I was cleaning up the house on the second day after my wife went for a business trip.

I casually instructed the smart speaker. “Smart, play some music.”

However, I heard a husky, strange male voice.

“Sure. I’m the Sun that loves you. Plus, Lindy, I would like to remind you not to forget about your birthday surprise for Sam tonight.”

I stiffened and found the music particularly annoying. Linda Clark was my wife, but I had no idea who Sam was.

I immediately called my wife. “Did you use the smart speaker at home?”

Linda paused for a moment before she laughed indifferently. “Oh, my friend visited me a few days ago. She might have connected her account to it. What’s wrong?”

I laughed and told her it was nothing. After hanging up, I found the login record of the speaker and hailed a cab. I headed straight to the registered company associated with the unfamiliar account on the record.

The cab stopped in front of Sun Design Co.

I looked up at it and found the glass wall dazzling under the sunlight, just as its domineering momentum in the industry over the past two years had dazzled many others.

It was the main rival company of our design company, Dream Co.

The young female receptionist was very professional. She did not put on a sour face, even though I was the boss of her rival company. She merely did her job and dialed the intercom.

A man in casual clothes quickly appeared a few minutes later. He looked decent and innocent. His name was Samuel Wilson.

He panicked briefly when he saw me. But he soon calmed down and faked a smile.

“Hello! May I have your name?”

“I’m here to talk about my smart speaker.” I got straight to the point and looked at him calmly. “Your account is on the login record.”

“Ah, that smart speaker!” Realization dawned on him. Then, he scratched his head in embarrassment. “It was my roommate. He used my phone to log in to the speaker a few days ago. His membership has expired, so he used mine. Did we cause any inconvenience? I’m so sorry!”

His excuse was impeccable. Not only did he extricate himself, but he also seemed innocent of any wrongdoing.

If I did not know Linda Clark better, I might have believed him.

Linda was conceited and sensitive. She would never allow an irrelevant intern to use his personal account to log in to a home device.

My gaze slowly moved away from his innocent expression to his wrist. He was wearing a silver bracelet.

Two irregularly-shaped rings were interlocked in the bracelet. One of them was engraved with the letter “L.”

I made that design for our wedding anniversary last year. I asked my friend, who was a craftsman, to make it. Then, I gave it to Linda.

The engraved letter “L” indicated that it belonged to Linda.

There was only one like it in the world.

Samuel noticed my gaze and subconsciously hid his hand behind him.

However, I smiled and took a step forward. I said softly, “Your bracelet is unique. Did your girlfriend give it to you? What good taste!”

Instantly, blood drained from his face. His lips trembled, and he could not say a word.

That was enough for me. I did not look at him anymore and turned to leave.

I took a cab home. Then, I immediately called Alex Lynch, my best friend. He was the best divorce lawyer in the field.

When Alex answered the phone, he said loudly, “Hey, Charles! This is rare. Did you miss me?”

“Do me a favor.” I looked out the window at the rapidly receding streetscape. I was calm and composed.

“Look into someone for me. Samuel Wilson, an intern at Sun Design Co. I need all of Linda’s financial transactions and hotel booking records from the past six months. Leave nothing behind.”

Alex paused briefly and sounded serious. “Are you going to dig up dirt on her to seize her assets?”

“It’s more serious than that.”

After hanging up, silence filled the cab. Before long, I got a call from Linda.

When I saw the ID, “Honey,” on the screen, I found the situation very ironic. I took a deep breath before picking it up.

“Charles, what happened?” I heard her usually gentle voice with the right amount of concern. “Alex told me that you want him to help investigate something. Did you run into any trouble at work?”

Her spies worked fast indeed.

I suppressed my raging emotions and said in the most normal tone of voice I could muster, “No, I just missed you.”

Linda heaved a sigh of relief and laughed softly.

“Silly, I miss you too! I’ll fly home to be with you right away after I’m done with this project, my Sun.”

I listened to her address me as her “Sun” and clenched the phone in my hand.

It seemed that I was not her only “Sun.” Most probably, it had never been me in the first place.

Alex was surprisingly fast. In half an hour, my phone vibrated.

I received a link and a comment from him.

[It’s a generous contribution from the best actor of the year. The evidence is so complete that I can’t bring myself to charge you with a full payment. Take your time and enjoy.]

I clicked on it and realized that it was Samuel’s social media account. It was set to public.

The newest post was a close-up photo of a wrist with the bracelet that I was most familiar with because of the engraved “L.” The caption went something like this:

[The Sun is coming to you, Miss C.]

My nickname “the Sun” and my bracelet had become another man’s prizes.

My face was devoid of expression as I scrolled down.

The background of one of the photos was the study in my house. Samuel held his face and smiled innocently, with the out-of-print architectural atlas I had collected from Lasnon behind him.

[I’m learning in Miss C’s study, and I’m getting better!]

Samuel held a pen and was drawing on a piece of paper in another photo. That pen had been my gift to Linda for her thirtieth birthday. It was a globally limited, co-branded pen.

[The pen Miss C gave me is so nice! She said my hand deserves the best pen.]

There was another photo from a private restaurant that we frequented. They ordered my favorites.

[This is my secret spot with Miss C. She said I’m her only harbor where she can fully relax!]

The photos and words were like sharp scalpels, slicing right into the most tender parts of my memory.

Then, I read the post from three days ago.

Samuel was holding a printed design draft in the photo and smiling in satisfaction.

The caption went: Miss C stayed up late to help me revise my draft. She told me I’m the most talented designer she’s ever met! I’m sure I can get the Sky Center project. I can do it!

We had spent all of our effort and prepared for half a year for the Sky Center project. It was the most important milestone of my career.

I abruptly got up from the sofa, grabbed the car key, and rushed out of my home.

The company was vacant at midnight. I used my fingerprint to unlock the door and went straight to Linda’s office.

The screensaver on her computer was still on. It was our wedding photo. She smiled happily in the photo, but it disgusted me.

I clicked on the keyboard, and the screen lit up. It prompted me to enter the password. I tried my birthday, which was the wrong password. Then, I tried our wedding anniversary date. That did not work either.

I sneered and keyed in Samuel’s birthday.

[Welcome.]

The desktop was neat and clean, but I immediately noticed an encrypted folder. I opened it and found the final proposal for the Sky Center project inside. Every detail reflected months of hard work by me and my team.

Surprisingly, there was another folder beside it, with the letter “S” as its name.

I opened it and found that the proposal in it was almost the same as mine. But there were some minor adjustments made to a few key load-bearing structures and design highlights. It also avoided the core patent, but it kept the essence of my proposal.

The proposal was signed with Samuel’s name.

Not only did Linda cheat on me, but she also stole my work and jeopardized the future of our company. She used it to paint a bright future for her young lover.

Nausea overcame me. I held onto the cold table firmly so that I would not collapse.

It seemed that jealousy and betrayal could make a woman seem like a different person entirely.

The bidding conference of the Sky Center project was full of people.

I sat at an inconspicuous corner and watched as the representative of Sun Design Co. walked onto the stage.

It was none other than Samuel.

He had put on a slim-fit professional suit with leather shoes that day. His hair was neatly done. His naive and innocent demeanor had been replaced by the confidence of a seasoned professional.

He took a deep breath and started describing the concept of his design.

“My design is inspired by the Eyes of the City. We don’t want it to be a cold building, but something that can breathe with this city. We hope it can be a living thing that witnesses the city’s development…”

Those were the exact words I once told Linda. Night after night, I made coffee and burned the midnight oil as I told her those very things.

I once thought that trust was the unspoken bond between our souls as a married couple.

Finally, I learned that I was only playing a part, and Linda had been the most patient thief.

What was more ironic was that Linda was sitting with the judges as a specially invited VIP.

Her long hair was tied up, and she had put on exquisite makeup. She looked like the professional elite that I was most familiar with.

She listened to Samuel attentively. She nodded from time to time. When she looked at Samuel, her eyes shone in a way I had never seen. She regarded Samuel as her treasure, and she was eager to show him off to the world.

She ignored me. I was sitting in a corner below the stage. She made it seem like I was just an irrelevant backdrop.

My phone vibrated briefly in my palm. It was a text from Alex.

[Do you need me there with some weapons?]

I looked at the screen and smiled a little despite my tightly pursed lips. I texted him back.

[Wait.]

Samuel’s speech reached its climax as he stood on the stage. The final image of his presentation was the one stolen from my computer.

The audience exclaimed softly.

When Samuel ended his speech, he received a roar of applause.

The host walked to the stage. “Thank you for your brilliant presentation, Mr. Wilson. Let’s ask our specially invited judge, Ms. Clark, for some comments on this proposal. She’s the most experienced senior in the field and comes from Dream Co.”

Linda accepted the microphone. She cleared her throat before she looked at Samuel and spoke up.

“To be honest, I’m very surprised. Mr. Wilson’s design perfectly balances aesthetic values with practicality. Plus, he made some adjustments to the few load-bearing structures. It’s very bold, and he’s full of talent.”

She claimed that Samuel was talented. At the same time, she used that to hurt me.

After a pause, she scanned the audience.

“I must admit that this design is undoubtedly the best today.”

The audience clapped enthusiastically.

I could hear nothing but loud silence besides the beating of my own heart.

The host smiled and chimed in, “Thank you for your high praise, Ms. Clark! It looks like Sun Design Co. might surely get this project! Is there any other guest or judge who would like to ask Mr. Wilson any questions?”

There was only silence.

After Linda, the expert, spoke so clearly, there was nothing more to say.

Samuel bowed on the stage and could not hide his smug happiness.

I pocketed my phone and stood up when everyone was about to clap again. I did not make any sudden movements, but I attracted everyone’s attention.

The host was stunned. “Sir, may I know who you are?”

Linda’s smile froze on her face.