On the day our company went public, my wife deliberately picked a fight. She accused me of dragging the company down and demanded that I hand over the R&D rights for our new product to her first love.

Instead of getting angry, I actually laughed. I even gave up my position and sincerely told her, “R&D is exhausting. Why don’t I just let him be the chief instead?”

Everyone around us was stunned. They thought I had finally snapped from the stress.

However, no one knew the truth. The final material that made the product actually work was incredibly complex, and I was the only one who knew how to make it.

Without me, the product they had spent a whole year developing turned out to be nothing but trash. My wife’s company would have to shoulder all the losses, along with a massive compensation payout on the way.

“Travis, you also deserve credit for the company going public today.

“Come and stand next to me. Let’s do this together.”

Vanessa grinned as she waved Travis over. He hurried toward her.

The two of them held the pair of scissors together, cutting the ribbon side by side.

All the employees surrounded them, clapping and cheering.

“This is such a good sign!”

“Look at Ms. Carline cutting the ribbon with Travis! It means they’re going to lead the company to even greater heights together!”

“Come on, let’s head inside. The celebration cake is ready for you two!”

My eyes burned when I watched that warm, joyful scene at the company entrance. I could not help but tighten my grip around the brooch in my hand.

Today was meant to be the day the company went public. I had been up early, preparing nonstop.

However, the moment we arrived at the entrance, my wife, Vanessa Carline, said she had left her brooch at home and asked me to drive back for it.

I cared about her and wanted her to look her best for the ceremony.

Therefore, I did not hesitate to turn the car around and rush home to find it.

However, everything became crystal clear when I saw Travis Skeldon standing in the spot that should have been mine.

The forgotten brooch was just an excuse. She wanted me out of the way so she could share this moment of glory with him.

They had even moved the ceremony up by half an hour.

Travis looked over and seemed to notice me. He pretended to be surprised and asked, “Stephen, why did you only get here now? We couldn’t find you anywhere, so we just went ahead. Sorry about that.”

He spoke while pretending to be flustered. He set the scissors aside, but the smug look in his eyes did not fade one bit.

He had only been at the company for less than two months, but he acted like he owned the place just because he was Vanessa’s first love.

Knowing Vanessa would always have his back, he felt free to challenge me recklessly at every turn.

Vanessa glanced at me and scolded me without mercy, “Stephen, how could you be late on such an important day? Did you expect everyone to just stand here and wait for you?

“You’re always holding the company back. If you can’t do anything right, just let Travis take over the new product’s R&D.

“This project is a joint effort with domestic and international partners. We can’t afford any screw-ups, especially from you.”

It was summer, yet her words cut through me like ice, freezing my blood.

Back then, when she said she wanted to start a company, I gave up my flourishing career without a second thought.

I poured in all my savings and built everything with her from scratch.

She was incapable of running a company on her own, so I carried all the weight and took on every burden without complaint just to achieve what we had today.

Travis had only attended a few meetings with Vanessa, and yet he effortlessly took credit for everything I had done.

Even the meetings he sat in were based entirely on my plans. All he did was read them out loud.

As I recalled this, I realized Vanessa was truly heartless.

With all that had happened, she had burned away the last trace of any marital bond between us.

I nodded numbly and said nonchalantly, “Fine. I’ll step aside.”

A hint of triumph flashed across Travis’ eyes, but he protested, “No, it shouldn’t be this way. I’m just a newcomer. I’m hardly qualified to handle domestic and international product development.

“I just heard that Stephen has been working on this product for almost a year, and it still isn’t finalized. I just wanted to help out a bit.”

Vanessa gently patted Travis’ shoulder. “Travis, don’t underestimate yourself. You studied at a top university, you were top of your class, and your major fits perfectly. No one else is as qualified as you!”

I almost laughed out loud when I heard what she said.

I knew Travis had no real skills at all. His so-called education was merely a degree he bought with money.

Only Vanessa treated him like he was a treasure.

Once she had reassured him, she turned back to belittle me, “Stephen, you’ve been working on this product for so long, and we still haven’t seen the results. Isn’t that because you aren’t capable enough?

“You can’t do anything right. I’ve been kind enough not to fire you! You should learn from Travis and stop causing me trouble.”

I secretly let out a sigh.

Vanessa probably forgot that she relied on me for every single decision in the company back then. She depended on me for absolutely everything.

Now that the company was on track, she began to believe she could do everything herself and wanted to shove me aside.

She droned on, spittle flying as she went on a tirade.

I took a deep breath and walked straight toward Travis.

The employees around us kept glancing back and forth, wearing expressions of eager curiosity.

It was as though they were sure I would be throwing punches at Travis at the next second.

However, I stopped in front of him with a smile and pulled out my chief's badge from my bag.

I handed it to Travis and said earnestly, “R&D is exhausting. I’ll let you be the chief.”

In an instant, the employees who had been waiting for drama looked shocked.

They thought I had finally lost it.

Everyone knew how much effort I had poured into this product, even how carefully I had trained the team.

Vanessa’s voice immediately turned colder as she stared at Travis holding the badge. “Stephen, what exactly are you doing?”

Strangely, I could hear a hint of displeasure in her tone.

I had just handed Travis a huge gift. She should be happy about it.

Letting Travis take all the credit and removing every barrier for him—was this not exactly what Vanessa wanted?

Travis gripped the badge tightly, like he was afraid I would take it back. He finally tore his greedy eyes away from it and gave me a troubled look and said, “Stephen, are you mad? Is that why you’re giving me the chief position?

“Please don’t misunderstand. Vanessa just wanted me to come over and help you out. It’s for the good of the company.

“I’ve never thought of replacing you. I can’t take this badge.”

He reached out, trying to return the badge to me.

Yet he moved like a snail, clearly unwilling to let go of this windfall.

I gave Travis a friendly smile and pushed his hand back.

“How could I be mad? I’m not upset at all. You’re a real talent. Of course, you deserve the best!”

Vanessa shot me a suspicious glance, but when she saw no trace of displeasure on my face, she just pouted and added, “Travis, just take it. Don’t feel embarrassed. After all, he’s doing it willingly. We didn’t force him!”

Travis thanked me repeatedly, pretending to be humble, but the smug look on his face gave him away.

I secretly let out a smirk. I had managed to finalize the material that would actually make the product work just a couple of days ago.

The formula was complicated, and no one else could replicate it.

Besides, Travis had no idea that being chief was not as easy as it looked. The chief was the core of the team and bore all the responsibility.

Without me, the product they had spent a year developing would be nothing more than a pile of junk. If Travis could not deliver, Vanessa’s company would be on the hook for all the losses and face a massive compensation bill.

Noticing my silence after handing over the chief position, Vanessa looked slightly uneasy. She cleared her throat and awkwardly said, “Alright, Stephen, stop standing here. It’s sweltering outside. Come on into the office and get ready to cut the celebration cake.”

She tilted her chin like she was granting me some grand favor.

I almost laughed at the absurdity. I was deliberately left out of the ribbon-cutting, and they thought a stupid cake could make me feel better.

What a joke!

The thought of cutting the cake with Vanessa made me feel inexplicably sick.

I was about to speak when Travis suddenly piped up, “Yeah, Stephen, you go ahead and get some cake first. A lot of confetti fell during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. I’ll stay behind and clean it up.”

He theatrically grabbed a broom and dustpan, dabbing at the sweat on his forehead.

I nearly forgot that they were supposed to cut the cake together. Travis was clearly playing the victim, trying to see how much Vanessa cared about him.

Sure enough, she snatched the broom from him and said in a coquettish tone, “Travis, your hands need to stay steady for delicate work. You shouldn’t do jobs like this!”

Then, she tossed the broom at my feet and said in disdain, “Stephen, clean this up before going inside. Or don’t even think about joining the lunch later.”

I looked at the broom at my feet and could not help but let out a cold chuckle.

Vanessa had always done this. It was the carrot and the stick approach.

My schedule at work had always been packed full. I had never had a seat at the lunch table.

Now, she was granting me this privilege? It was absolutely disgusting!

Travis, who was holding the dustpan, deliberately tilted it toward me. A piece of tissue smeared with snot landed on my shoe.

He covered his mouth and said in a pretentious tone, “Sorry, Stephen, I didn’t hold it steady.”

I said nothing and simply reached for the cleaning tools.

Travis’ smugness grew as his mouth twitched into a grin. He said in a falsely courteous tone, all while flaunting his pride, “Stephen, sorry for the trouble. I’ll leave it to you, then. Once Vanessa and I finish cutting the cake, you—ah!”

Before he could finish speaking, Travis’ expression suddenly twisted, and he exclaimed in shock.

I dumped the trash from the dustpan over his head, curling my lips in a mocking grin.