Chapter 3

I bought a ticket to France that very night.

At the vineyard, old Alfred, the butler, looked surprised to see me.

"Master Arthur, what brings you here? Didn't you say you were lending the estate to Madam Seraphina for an event today? You even had all the family staff cleared out."

Hearing that, I felt my anger flare.

Just as I was about to reply, Seraphina's call came through.

"Honey, I'm in a cross-country meeting right now. I'll fly back to you as soon as I'm done."

Before I could respond, I faintly heard a sickly sweet male voice from her end.

"Seraphina, do I look good in this?"

The next second, Seraphina covered the phone and moved away.

"Gotta go now, meeting's starting."

Almost simultaneously, the vineyard's ornate gates swung open. A dozen luxury cars pulled up to the fountain plaza.

Countless unfamiliar guests were seated, and I found a discreet spot to sit as well.

Once everything was ready, Julian Hayes emerged, dressed in a custom-tailored suit, beaming with an obnoxious, self-important swagger.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Julian Hayes, the new owner of this vineyard."

"My lady said that from now on, everything here—the wine, the castle, even every single grape in the vineyard—is mine to command!"

"To celebrate, all wines are seventy percent off! Consider it a welcome gift from me!"

Seventy percent off? He was certainly generous. The cheapest wine here cost over a million a bottle.

Some were rare vintages that I'd think twice about selling, even to the British royal family!

Old Alfred, who had watched me grow up, was seething with rage.

"When did this vineyard become *his*?"

"And Seraphina! She's cheating on you, Master Arthur! Is she out of her mind?"

Seeing Alfred about to storm out, I quickly shook my head. This wasn't the time to expose them.

I needed to wait for Seraphina to personally admit her relationship with Julian, then I would utterly ruin both of those despicable cheaters.

Just then, the ornate gates opened again, and Seraphina walked in, dressed in a designer suit.

Julian immediately wrapped an arm around her shoulder, grinning as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips.

"Seraphina, I told you this brand suited you best."

Seraphina's eyes visibly stiffened, but she nodded, her face impassive.

My rage, however, was about to ignite. The founder of that brand was a sworn enemy of my family.

My grandfather had been framed by their schemes and had literally died of anger.

Seraphina knew all about it. Yet now, she was publicly slapping me in the face.

Just as I could no longer hold back and was about to storm out, Seraphina's friends all swarmed around her.

"Julian, our Seraphina just gifted you a vineyard worth hundreds of millions! Where else could you find such an amazing woman?"

"From now on, this vineyard will belong to the Hayes family! How are you going to thank our Seraphina?"

Amidst their laughter, Julian tightened his arm around Seraphina's shoulder, his face radiating smug triumph.

"Of course, I'll thank my lady properly in bed~"

His words were sickeningly suggestive. Seraphina, her face flushed, cast a coquettish glance at him.

Pure fury consumed me.

Just as I was about to say something, Mr. Davies, the vineyard manager, approached to serve wine and spoke, looking confused.

"Belong to the Hayes family? Didn't Madam Seraphina just borrow this estate from my young master?"

At his words, the guests exchanged bewildered glances, whispering amongst themselves.

"What's going on?"

"I only heard this vineyard belonged to Mrs. Caldwell's husband, but isn't her husband's last name Lockhart?"

"Wait, then who is this Mr. Hayes? Is he some kind of fake?"

Mr. Davies's face was already alight with anger.

"Madam Seraphina, how could you do such a thing behind the young master's back?"

With that, he reached for his phone, intending to call me.

The next second, Seraphina's bodyguards swarmed forward, shoving Mr. Davies to his knees.

Seraphina's gaze swept coldly over the stunned crowd.

"Shut his mouth. Let him learn the cost of reckless talk."

Her voice was low, yet it carried the brutal authority of a mob boss. The banquet hall fell silent in an instant.

Seraphina didn't even bat an eye, her fingertips idly tracing Julian's face.

"Julian is my *true* husband! Arthur Lockhart is nothing more than a servant in my household!"

A servant?

I nearly laughed at the sheer audacity.

It seemed Seraphina had truly forgotten who had painstakingly elevated her to the position of a mob boss.

If it hadn't been for me, she'd still be being bullied and scavenging for scraps on the streets!

I had toiled with her for ten years. I'd even taken two bullets to the chest for her. And my father helped her behind the scenes countless times.

On the brink of death, all I could think about was how to pave the way for her.

And in the end, in her mouth, I was just a "servant."

No one dared to challenge Seraphina, and they all quickly chimed in.

"Oh, so that's it! Mr. Caldwell's husband is really too generous, letting a security guard use the Caldwell name to parade around, swindling people."

Someone even advised Julian.

"Mr. Hayes, a security guard like that might try to seduce Mrs. Caldwell at any moment."

"You need to be careful! I think you should just fire him!"

"With such evil intentions, he should be thrown into the sea to feed the fish!"

Julian's smug expression was impossible to hide.

The manager's face was ashen. As he was dragged away, he struggled desperately.

"I want to see Mr. Arthur Lockhart! He's Mrs. Caldwell's real husband!"

The guests' faces contorted with disdain.

"This security guard is truly cunning. Even the vineyard manager was fooled by him!"

"Mrs. Caldwell, you can't keep an ungrateful snake like that around."

Seraphina's cold gaze swept over the crowd, her thin lips parting.

"I'll say it one more time. Julian Hayes is my *only* husband. If any of you dare to disrespect him from now on, don't blame me for being ruthless."

The room fell silent. Only I slowly began to clap, the sound drawing everyone's attention.

I took off my baseball cap and looked at them coldly.

"Then tell me, if *he's* your husband, who am I?"

Seraphina and Julian's smiles instantly froze.

The air in the banquet hall seemed to solidify instantly.

All eyes in the room snapped to me. From initial bewilderment to dawning recognition, guests gasped in unison.