Chapter 1

“This project proposal is urgent. Have it done before you leave work,” Fiona said coldly, dropping a thick stack of documents on my desk before turning to leave.

As soon as she disappeared around the corner, my colleagues gathered around, chattering away.

“Isn’t this Zack’s project?”

“His projects are the hardest, with lots of requirements and difficult research. Forget finishing by tonight, it might not even be done by tomorrow evening.”

“The boss is really biased towards him. He doesn’t do his own projects but pawns them off to others.”

“…”

They clustered around me, speaking without restraint. I knew full well they weren’t really speaking up for me, just stirring up drama.

Everyone knew that CEO Fiona was my girlfriend, yet she heavily favored my rival, Zack.

Back then, she not only broke protocol to promote Zack to project manager, but she even handed him the million-dollar project I had spent a month securing and over a month of sleepless nights nearly completing.

When I protested, Fiona put it to a public vote to decide the project’s ownership.

These colleagues who pretended to speak up for me unanimously voted for Zack when it came time to cast ballots. Afterwards, they explained to me that they were pressured by Fiona’s intimidation and asked me to look after the new colleague.

This kind of thing happened many times after that.

My colleagues were still “sympathizing” with me, but this time I didn’t storm off to Fiona’s office to confront her like before. Instead, I calmly accepted the project brief.

Seeing this, my colleagues’ eyes widened. They were about to say something more when Fiona came down from upstairs. They immediately fell silent and hurried back to their desks.

Fiona seemed to be in a good mood and ignored their little movements. She reminded me to leave the completed proposal on her desk.

Seeing me nod, she turned on her heel and left without looking back.

She had put on elaborate makeup and was wearing a skirt that barely reached her knees. It didn’t take much imagination to know she was off to meet Zack.

This had been happening frequently over the years.

It all started when I discovered Fiona and Zack’s goodnight messages to each other. When I confronted her about it, Fiona thought I was being petty and angrily brought Zack into the company, breaking protocol.

To punish me for my suspicions, she deliberately favored Zack, taking him to various social events, and even feeding him and wiping his mouth in front of everyone at company dinners.

When I got angry, she gave me the silent treatment. When I apologized, she would use it as an opportunity to team up with colleagues to lecture and criticize me. Everyone said I wasn’t being a big enough man.

I often reflected on this, wondering if I wasn’t open-minded enough, which led to our current situation.

But later, when I accidentally discovered that Zack was her first love, I finally understood. She was just using the excuse of desensitizing me to my “pettiness” as a cover to openly maintain her connection with her old flame.

Even without the incident of me seeing their chat history, Fiona would have found other excuses to be with Zack.

After they returned from their recent business trip together, although they still frequently met for meals, drinks, and sports like before, I could sense that their relationship had become more subtle.

But fortunately, I no longer cared.

Our five-year relationship had come to an end.

This farce needed to end too.

After finishing the proposal, I was the only one left in the office. I opened my phone to find that Zack had posted several updates on SnapChat.

The background was a fancy restaurant, with a romantic candlelit dinner on the table in front of them.

Fiona was elegantly cutting Zack’s steak for him.

The caption read: “Steak cut by the lady boss herself must taste extra delicious.”

In the comments, several colleagues were praising how sweet they looked together. Zack jokingly boasted further that Fiona, who usually doesn’t drink, had half a bottle of red wine to help him celebrate the project’s success.

The comments section became increasingly lively with various speculations. Fiona didn’t explain, only saying “It’s what I should do.”

Some clueless person asked when they could drink to their wedding. Fiona replied with three dots, while Zack sent a “naughty” emoji.

I didn’t get angry and call Fiona like I used to, only to be scolded by her for their ambiguous relationship.

Instead, I sent her a message saying I had finished the proposal, then left the file in her office before driving home.

When I got home, I saw that Fiona had replied to my message.

“Lucas, this is Zack. Thanks for your hard work on the project. I’ll treat you to a meal sometime.”

Fiona always kept her phone close and would get angry if I so much as checked the time on it, accusing me of invading her privacy. Now she had handed it to Zack, letting him read our chats and reply to my messages.

I let out a scornful laugh.

Different status in her heart indeed led to different treatment.

However, I felt strangely calm at this moment.

Things that used to feel earth-shattering now seemed trivial.

Feelings always change, only hard work never betrays you.

I pulled up my calendar and checked the date.

Not long ago, when Fiona and Zack went on a “business trip” that was really just a vacation, I took the opportunity to submit my resignation. As expected, when Fiona was with Zack, all her attention was on him. She approved it without even looking.

Now, I just had to wait three more days for the handover to be completed, and I could leave for good.

After some thought, I called my former advisor at the research institute abroad.

I had joined the institute as an outstanding graduate, enjoying preferential treatment. But when Fiona said she needed people to start her company, I quit without hesitation. Despite my advisor’s repeated attempts to dissuade me, I resolutely returned to China to help her build the company from scratch.

Looking back now, I realize how foolish I was.

When the call connected, I explained my intention.

I thought I’d be scolded, but to my surprise, my advisor sighed and told me he had known about my situation for a while and had been planning to invite me back.

“But this time, have you really thought it through?” he asked.

I nodded, “Yes, I’ve thought it through. I’ve already taken care of the resignation process.”

“Resignation? What resignation?”

A startled cry came from behind me.

I turned around to see Fiona pushing open the door.