He had even slipped a ring onto my finger, a symbol of loyalty and honesty.

Three years together, how could I not know it was Michael?

The caption beneath the photo was simple. [With one sentence, I'm back, no matter how late it is, someone will pick me up.]

Like an obsessed fool, I couldn’t stop staring at her post, even checking the time she shared it.

Three weeks ago, at 2 a.m.?

That day, I was wearing the black stockings personally chosen by Michael. After one glass of wine after another, I was pushed onto the floor covered in candles by him.

He kept teasing me, igniting thunder and lightning that made me go crazy.

But just as he was about to tear off the black stockings, his phone rang. He instinctively tried to turn it off, but upon seeing the message, he quickly pulled away from me.

The desire in his dark eyes instantly disappeared. He didn’t even throw me something to cover myself with and after grabbing his coat, he rushed out.

“I have an urgent matter. I’ll deal with you tomorrow.”

The door slammed shut and my desires were crushed in the gap of the door, while he didn’t return for an entire week.

Every day, a report message showed his hectic schedule, as if he was so busy that he couldn't even find time to rest.

One after another, his good buddies would cover for him. But it turned out, his so-called business was actually spending time with his official girlfriend.

Three years of memories, all too vivid. The pain turned into hatred, hatred for my own foolishness in believing that was love.

Utterly disappointed, I called my brother with tears in my eyes: "I want to come home."

"Had enough of wandering? I told you long ago, why give up being a young rich lady to become a small clerk in Altheris? Now you see how harsh society can be, huh? So, when are you coming back?"

"Tomorrow night’s flight!"

"That soon?"

"Yes, very soon."

After hanging up, a message from Michael popped up on WhatsApp. It was a picture of fireworks blooming, with a giant heart shape filled with thousands of tiny hearts, taken from the angle of a yacht. It was a photo taken by Michael himself.

[Do you like it? I knew you would, I took it just for you.]

He gave the grand wedding ceremony to someone else but kept the pictures for me. Michael was not only frugal but also very cunning. Tears fell onto my screen as I enlarged Michael's insincere words.

"Like my heart, it’s full of you. Romantic, isn't it?"

If I hadn't been there to witness him passionately kissing that woman until they were almost out of breath, I might have believed it.

Wiping away my tears, I replied with two words: "So romantic."

Your love spans mountains and oceans, a cross-border romance.

Back in the private room, I pulled my best friend along. She was confused, so I asked her, "Didn't you say you wanted to get rich? I'm here to help you with that."

We quickly contacted a second-hand luxury goods company. I sold all my luxury bags, jewelry and the clothes and shoes filling my wardrobe at a heavily discounted price. Even the sofa, bed and kitchenware I had personally chosen were moved to my friend's place by a moving company.

"It's all yours. Use what you can and throw away what you can't. I won't leave a single thing I earned over three years for anyone else."

Before dawn, half of the villa was emptied. I received a check for four million, which was the price I paid for being in a gilded cage for three years. It was the exact same amount Michael spent proposing to his beloved, how cheap.

My best friend looked at the drastically changed villa in disbelief. "What's the difference from a bare shell?"

What a good idea.

I quickly hired five makeshift construction teams and tirelessly turned the luxurious villa into a bare shell. Looking at my sleepless night's work, I felt no joy, only a sense of disgrace and worthlessness.

"Anne, I'm exhausted. Can I sleep at your place?"

"Of course, besides me, what else in my house isn't given by you? Welcome home, sis."

I smiled, took off the big diamond ring from my ring finger and placed it on the lock button by the entrance door. From then on, everything about Michael was left in that yard, shattered to pieces.

Following Anne back to her place, I was utterly exhausted and couldn't hold back anymore. I collapsed on her bed and slept soundly for an entire day.

When I woke up in the evening, there was a message from Michael on my phone: [Come home tonight, I have a surprise for you. And prepare my favorite snacks. I want to devour both the snacks and you.]

Sure enough, he treated me like a plaything. He thought he was being affectionate, sending dozens of heart emoji stickers, yet he had no idea that just a minute earlier, his fiancée had updated her social media: [Who else is as generous as me, letting you go to your flings at the drinking table?]

Michael replied, [Honey, you're the most generous.]

Then, Sarah Walker, that woman, messaged me: [I went to your place. I chose the most expensive bag for you, no need to thank me. By the way, Michael sprained his waist last night, so take it easy during your little games.]

I hated her nonchalant display of blatant bragging and sarcasm beneath her calm demeanor.

I also hated being unknowingly dragged into their games. Somehow, I found the courage to reply provocatively, [Don't worry, I'm on top."]

The typing on the other end stopped. I finally felt a bit of satisfaction.

Michael messaged again: [What do you want to eat tonight? I'll bring it home for you. How about some chicken soup?]

He still didn't know that the house was gone and so was I. With a sarcastic smile, I replied, [Make sure to eat well, there's a surprise waiting for you at home.]

Getting up to take a shower, I left without looking back, with Anne in tears. I boarded the flight back to the coastal city.

I discarded my phone card, severing all ties with Altheris from then on.

Michael, carrying the limited-edition designer bag, excitedly pushed open the villa's door and was stunned. He even thought he had walked into the wrong place. After rubbing his eyes and repeatedly checking the villa's address, he confirmed it was indeed his home.

But overnight, it had turned into a wasteland-like garbage dump. He reflexively called out for my name, but in the empty villa, there was nothing but cold, shattered concrete.

He began to panic. Taking out his phone, he dialed my number. The repeated shutdown notifications made him realize that he was trembling. He then called several of his close friends one by one:

"Hey, did any of you tell Taylor about Sarah coming back?"

"No!"

"Did you block Taylor from seeing your social media posts?"

"Every time we have a gathering, we block her."

"So, has she tried to contact me?"

"Yes, often in the past, but not these past few days."

Michael's frown deepened. Just as he was about to curse, he spotted the diamond ring on the door frame.

It was the ring I refused to take off, even during our play. The one I said made me his wife. The ring he thought I would wear forever.

The ring was just taken off like that. His pupils dilated and for a moment, it felt like his heart was being squeezed, causing him immense pain.

But just as he rushed out the door, Sarah stood behind him, smiling. "Why did you demolish the house? Are you planning to renovate it for our new home?"

The panic in Michael's eyes quickly faded. He took Sarah's hand and smiled, "What kind of decoration do you like?"

"Hmm, something simple."

"Alright, whatever you say."

With their fingers tightly intertwined, the two of them walked out the door side by side.

As Michael had just held the diamond ring in his hand, he threw it to the ground the moment Sarah appeared. Before leaving, Sarah glanced back with a cold smile and kicked it into the sewer, murmuring, "I don't want it and you don't deserve to pick it up!"

Michael didn’t look back. He thought to himself that he had probably spoiled me too much, indulging me every whim, letting me throw little tantrums at him.

The villa's multimillion-dollar renovation was destroyed overnight, becoming a joke in their circle.

He cursed under his breath, “What is there to make a fuss about with her background? Even if there are other women outside, so what? She probably doesn't know how many girls are lining up to throw themselves at me with just a wave of my hand. I spend a lot of money, give her plenty of love and affection and even during the years Sarah is away, I never sleep with another woman.”

He believed that he had already been attentive enough to me. If I continued to act out, he regarded it as my immaturity and without him, I wouldn't have lasted three months before facing hardship. A woman he had pampered wouldn't be able to handle the grind of a nine-to-five job, bowing and scraping.

He determined that once I was done throwing tantrums and wanted to come back, he'd lay down the rules properly.

What he didn't know was that while he might have been the prince of Altheris, I was the quintessential young lady of Zeroth. We both played our roles in this game for three years. While he performed convincingly, I was just as committed.

Three months later, a grand banquet was held at the Thompson Family's mansion in Zeroth City.

I was forcibly ordered by my brother to attend as a representative of the Taylor Family. By the time I dragged my feet to the venue, more than half the guests had already arrived.

To my surprise, I ran into some familiar faces beside the Thompson Family patriarch.

Michael, with his arm around Sarah's slender waist, stood beside the old man, holding a wine glass. As half of Zeroth City's elite and wealthy business people took turns greeting the patriarch, the two of them naturally blended in, gaining recognition in the process.

Michael, claiming the title of Walker Family's son-in-law, never left Sarah's side for a moment.

The moment he saw me, the smile on his face froze.

Instinctively, he loosened his grip around Sarah's slender waist.

As for Sarah, when her gaze followed Michael's and landed on me, her expression changed slightly but only for a moment. She then calmly leaned close to Michael's ear and said something.

Without waiting for me to greet Mr. Thompson, Michael walked straight toward me. Ignoring the startled gasps from others, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me to a corner by the staircase.

Lowering his voice, Michael asked me, "Why are you here? Where have you been these past three months? Why did you block all my contact information? Am I really that unworthy of your affection? If that's the case, then why did you show up here? Do you even realize how important tonight's banquet is to me? Whether the Harris family can gain a foothold in Zeroth City depends entirely on tonight."

He signed. "Three months of drama is enough. This is not the place for you to be causing trouble. Go back to the hotel and wait for me."

Without caring about my protests, he reached into my handbag, trying to find my phone to leave his number in it.