At the class session joined by the school leaders and officials from the Department of Education, my lecture PPT was swapped for a sensational "Mistress's Charge Letter".

"Charge one. Willingly being the other woman makes her an unsuitable role model for students."

"Charge two. Attempting to secure a higher position through sex."

"Charge three. Menacing the lawful wife with the absurd hope of advancing through pregnancy."

Amidst the leaders and officials, my husband's illegitimate child accused me of disrupting her parents' marriage.

In the name of "expelling the mistress to achieve justice", she coerced me, the true wife, into a humiliating bow to the mistress.

I confronted my husband upon his arrival, "Care to explain? Why didn't I know that you had an illegitimate daughter?"

He responded with a strike to the girl's face.

"Where are you from, you unruly child? You're so ill-mannered!"

The school leaders and officials from the Department of Education were seated, ready for the class session.

As the bell rang, I claimed the start of the class, but the students remained unresponsive.

They were either engrossed in their textbooks or casting meaningful glances my way.

I sensed something was amiss.

But considering the presence of the leaders and officials, I forced a smile and began my introduction.

Moments later, as I started the lecture from the projection, I discovered my PPT had been replaced!

The words "Mistress's Charge Letter" glaringly appeared on the screen.

Before I could react, Jennifer Woolf stood abruptly.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today I'm reporting my history teacher, Odelia Woolf, is a homewrecker, destroying my family!"

A wave of whispers spread through the class.

Hearing this, the leaders and officials immediately turned to the principal.

I maintained composure, saying, "Jennifer, if you have an issue with me, let's discuss it privately. This is class time; please sit and respect the rules."

The principal assured her. "We will look into Mrs. Woolf's situation. Let's focus on class for now."

But Jennifer scornfully retorted, "You've failed to limit her blatant affair! Your cover-ups are just deceiving us!"

The students' emotions flared, and a cacophony of accusations arose.

"How can a moral degenerate like her be a vice principal? What can she teach us except seduction?"

"I'm afraid to have my dad at parent-teacher meetings. Who knows when she will start her flirtatious show?!"

"Indeed, she might even be seducing male students in secret!"

As their claims grew increasingly absurd, I lost my patience and slammed the textbook on the desk, commanding silence before the room erupted again.

The principal, realizing the situation was out of control, suggested the officials leave.

However, Jennifer seized the moment and locked the classroom door.

Before I could even order her to hand over the key, she tossed it out the window.

The leaders, realizing that the whole thing would not end well, resignedly returned to their seats under the students' gazes.

Now that the class session was completely ruined, I was livid. "Jennifer, you've misunderstood. I am already married!"

"Marriage doesn't stop one from being a homewrecker," Jennifer shot back, triumphant. "Today, I'll expose Odelia Woolf's sins to you guys!"

She snatched the remote from me and took over the presentation.

"Charge one. Willingly being the other woman makes you an unsuitable role model for students."

"My parents have been happily married for fifteen years. The ring my dad always wears is proof. Yet, Odelia, in secret, bought a matching ring and constantly flirted with him. Here's the screenshot evidence!"

My face flushed at the sight of the proof.

I had never thought that my private chat logs with my husband, Harlan Woolf, would be exposed for all to see.

I had not been pregnant in our years of marriage, so I had been anxious about it in recent months. Thus, our sexual life had been mentioned frequently lately.

But before I could gather my thoughts, Jennifer advanced to the next slide.

"Charge two. Attempting to secure a higher position through sex with my dad. Here are the photos I captured!"

The screen displayed intimate moments between Harlan and me.

I saw pictures of us hugging in his office after school, me sitting on his lap, and us kissing.

Jennifer berated me, "Odelia, what do you have to say for yourself now?"

Jennifer's mother, Doris Dewey, had been a struggling student funded by Harlan.

After graduating from high school, she was suddenly found to be pregnant and did not even attend university.

Every time Harlan mentioned her, his words were full of regret.

Later, her life had been not satisfactory, and Harlan, unable to bear it, took care of her often.

Perhaps it was for this reason that Jennifer misunderstood the relationship between Harlan and Doris.

Thinking of this, I explained sincerely once again, "Harlan and I are legally married! Although we did not have a wedding ceremony back then, many people knew about our marriage."

An older female teacher in the audience also chimed in, "I can testify to this. When Harlan got married, he indeed sent us all wedding candies."

Jennifer sneered after hearing this. "Just because you ate some wedding candies, did he personally admit that he married Odelia?"

The teacher was stunned for a moment, then silently shook her head.

Actually, since my father was a high-ranking official in the Department of Education, Harlan did not want to be accused of taking advantage of his father-in-law's influence, so we kept our marriage low-key, forgoing even a wedding ceremony.

We also maintained a discreet demeanor in public, never referring to each other as "husband" or "wife".

Now it had become a disadvantage on my side.

My heart inevitably sank a bit more.

"Charge three. Menacing the lawful wife with the absurd hope of advancing through pregnancy. My dad told me that you threatened him to divorce my mom. When he disagreed, you planned to accuse him of sexual harassment at work! You even dreamed of getting pregnant so that he could marry you. Fucking whore! Listen, as long as I'm here, you will never have a child."

At this juncture, the absurdity of the misunderstanding became crystal clear.

Not only had Harlan fathered an illegitimate daughter behind my back, but I was even being labeled a mistress!

Thinking about Jennifer's age, I just realized that she should have been born shortly after Harlan and I got married.

A chill ran through me as if I'd been plunged into an icy abyss.

As I stood there, helpless, a male teacher from my department spoke up, "I've seen Harlan and Odelia in the seminars together multiple times. Just the other day, during a downpour, it was Harlan who drove Odelia home from work. If they were having an affair, wouldn't they be more discreet?"

His words seemed to wake the onlookers up from the misunderstanding, and the previously silent students began to rally in my defense.

"That's right. A mistress would want to keep her affair hidden!"

"I heard that Mr. Woolf and his wife graduated from the same college. Isn't Mrs. Woolf a graduate of his college as well?"

"Could it be... a genuine misunderstanding? Accusing the legal wife of being the mistress? That's just ridiculous!"

Realizing the tide of public opinion shifting, Jennifer bellowed like an angry wolf cub, "She only dared to flaunt her relationship with my dad because she saw my mom as weak and easy to bully! My dad's junior? My mom was accepted to the same college, too. She just didn't attend it because she was pregnant with me!"

"That makes sense! My aunt was in the countryside before, and my uncle took up with another woman in the city. None of his colleagues knew about my aunt's existence, and they even thought that the mistress was his wife!"

"People like that are even more despicable! Taking advantage of the fact that those wives are not around, they keep pushing their way in!"

"If she dares to be a mistress and destroys other people's families, why doesn't she admit it now? She even claims she is the wife. How shameless!"

As the murmurs of disapproval grew around me, the male teacher who'd defended me looked so embarrassed.

Even the attending officials gazed at me with disdain.

"I never expected Mrs. Woolf to be so shameful! If she really married Harlan, why didn't she have a wedding?"

"It's no wonder the students are so angry. Having someone like her in the teaching profession would indeed harm the children."

I realized then that if I didn't clarify things today, I would forever be branded a mistress.

"You say Harlan is your dad; is your mom named Doris Dewey?"

Jennifer laughed arrogantly. "So, you're finally admitting to being the mistress?"

"Let's call them both over and settle this once and for all. Then we'll know who the mistress is and who the disgraceful illegitimate daughter is!"

"Well! If that's what you want, don't blame me for exposing your shame!"

As Jennifer took out her phone to call her mother, I also called Harlan, who was in a meeting out of town, but no one answered.

I had no choice but to send him a message, asking him to come back quickly.

In a short while, Doris arrived at the school.

Jennifer took out a spare key and opened the door for her.

"Mom, don't be afraid! Tell everyone here, is Odelia the third party in your marriage?"

Doris bit her lip lightly, looking weak and helpless.

"Jennifer, just let it go! After all, it's a family matter. Airing our history in public won't do Odelia's reputation any good."

"Mom, she has bullied you, yet you are still thinking about her! She's only so bold in her affair because she thinks you're an easy target. With so many witnesses today, it's time to stand up for you, the rightful wife!"

Doris blinked, a tear escaping the corner of her eye. "I'm just a housewife, while Odelia holds a prestigious position as a vice principal. What can we do to fight against her?"

I couldn't help but chuckle at her ambiguous words.

My gaze was piercing as I bore into her. "Doris, tell the truth. Did you and Harlan ever obtain a marriage certificate?"

Doris, her lips pressed tight, shrank behind Jennifer, her demeanor suggesting I had struck fear into her very soul.

The male teacher, who had defended me moments before, now felt a surge of protectiveness towards Doris.

He pointed an accusing finger at me, his voice firm as he comforted her, "Don't be afraid. You have our support. If you identify Odelia as the mistress, we will collectively bring this to the attention of the authorities and ensure she faces the full extent of the consequences."

A fleeting sparkle of cunning danced in Doris's eyes, quickly replaced by a well of sorrow as she lifted her gaze.

With a dramatic display of despair, she dropped to her knees before me, her tears and snot mingling in a plea. "Mrs. Woolf, I beg of you, have mercy on us!"

This spectacle was a dagger to the hearts of all who witnessed it.

Doris was clearly sidestepping my question, yet the onlookers seemed to interpret her behavior as an admission of my alleged degradation.

Jennifer's voice rose above the murmurs, her arms waving with fervor. "Guys, if we turn a blind eye today, who will stand for us when our time comes? Today, we are the judges of the mistress! For this shameless mistress who wreaks havoc on others' family, we owe it to ourselves to mete out justice!"

Encouraged by Jennifer's impassioned words, the students jumped onto their desks, their chant of "Expel the mistress and make it right" echoing through the hall.

Amidst the turmoil, an anonymous hand hurled a rotten egg in my direction.

Doris, concealed within the crowd, offered me a smirk of triumph as I stood there, befouled and humiliated.

Seizing the opportunity, Jennifer delivered a swift kick to my abdomen.

A bolt of agony shot through me, and I doubled over, a trickle of blood seeping from between my legs.

As the situation became out of control, a handful of male teachers intervened, their presence a wall against the escalating chaos.

The pool of blood beneath me spread, and Jennifer, still just a schoolgirl, was gripped by panic.

"Mrs. Woolf, if you apologize to my mother with a bow and promise to keep away from my father after resigning, I'll consider our scores settled," she said.

I met their gaze with a surge of resentment. "You will pay for this!"

As my words fell, the classroom door burst open, and Harlan, drenched in sweat, rushed in.

"What has happened, Odelia?" he questioned.

Ignoring the ache in my body, I gestured sarcastically towards Jennifer. "Care to explain? Why didn't I know that you had an illegitimate daughter?"

Harlan paused, then, digesting the information, he turned and slapped Jennifer without delay.

"Where are you from, you unruly child? You're so ill-mannered!" he demanded.