I had been married for three years, and my husband treated me with the same love as on our wedding day.

He didn't mind my inability to have children. In fact, he comforted me, saying he wanted to be child-free, and that we were perfectly matched.

I believed him, thinking I was the happiest woman in the world.

That is, until one day, I saw him walking with a visibly pregnant woman, arm in arm, on the street.

Only then did I realize I had been cruelly deceived. When I confronted him, he acted nonchalant.

"Isn't it just borrowing a womb to have a child? You can't bear children, and I need to leave a legacy for the White family," he said, utterly unfazed.

I scoffed bitterly, "Fine, go ahead and leave your legacy. I won't be around to witness it."

——

After a fierce argument with Max White, I stormed home.

Not long after, he followed me in.

The moment he stepped through the door, his face was grim, and he shouted angrily.

"Vivian Smith, are you crazy?! Mandy Green is pregnant! What if you scared the baby with your yelling?"

I gave him a cold glance, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Scare the baby? Well, blame yourself for not providing a stable environment for him to be born into."

"Vivian, stop being so harsh. Didn't I already explain? Mandy is not my mistress. She's just carrying our child. Once the baby's born, it'll be raised by you and call you mom!"

I stared at his flushed, furious face, his eyes bulging with rage.

I suddenly questioned my judgment—who exactly was this man I had chosen?

Seeing my silence, Max clenched his jaw and stormed into the bathroom.

I numbly retreated to the bedroom, slumping to the floor against the door.

In my trembling hand was a pregnancy report I had picked up from the hospital just an hour earlier.

Tears welled up in my eyes, dripping onto the word "8 weeks pregnant" on the report.

Despite being told by doctors three years ago that I couldn't conceive, this unexpected pregnancy had filled me with hope.

I had planned to surprise my husband, but instead, he had surprised me first.

For a moment, I wasn't sure whether to tell him about this pregnancy.

When we were married, a medical exam revealed my blocked fallopian tubes, possibly rendering me infertile.

I had been upfront with Max, expecting him to feel conflicted.

But instead, he'd casually shrugged it off, saying, "No problem, I'm child-free too. We're a perfect match."

I believed him, feeling deeply touched, and we lived peacefully for three years.

Little did I know, his whole "child-free" persona was a lie. He had secretly found another woman to bear his child.

Suddenly, the door banged loudly. Max pushed the door outside. I quickly wiped my tears and lay down on the bed. Max pushed it open and walked in.

He climbed in beside me, wrapping his arm around me from behind, his tone softening.

"I'm sorry, honey. I know this is sudden. I was planning to tell you at the right time, but—"

My body stiffened, and I shifted away from him, seizing the opportunity to create some distance.

His anger flared up again.

"It's just borrowing a womb to have a child! You can't bear children, and I need to carry on the White family line. And besides, it's not like I'm having an affair—I'm just using her to have a baby! Why are you so jealous?"

After shouting, Max got up and stormed out of the room. Moments later, I heard the door slam.

My heart sank. He went out at this time not for working.

Where could he be going at this hour? The answer was obvious.

Now I knew why he'd been coming home late so often lately, always using work as an excuse.

He'd been spending time with Mandy, the woman carrying his child.

I placed my hands on my still-flat stomach, my emotions in turmoil.

I cherished this hard-won baby more than anything.

But the thought of Max having another woman bear his child filled me with disgust.

As I wrestled with whether to keep the baby, I saw that Mandy had updated her social media.

"I'm lucky to have the chance to bear his child, even if we can't be together. That's a kind of happiness too."

A wave of anger surged within me. I immediately liked her post and left a comment: [Only a shameless mistress would call having a bastard child happiness.]

Unexpectedly, no sooner had I posted the comment than Max's furious call came through.

As soon as he spoke he started to curse in a furious and vicious manner.

"Vivian, what the hell is wrong with you? Mandy is pregnant, and you keep provoking her! I've explained a thousand times, there's nothing between us—it's just a deal! Can you stop being so venomous? Huh? Answer me!"

When I first found out what Max had done, I was heartbroken.

But after being lied to repeatedly, and with him treating me this way, my heart had gone cold. As he screamed into the phone, I remained silent.

When he finally finished, I spoke calmly.

"There's nothing between you and her? Fine. Then tell me, where are you right now?"

"Who is it, Max? It's late—hang up and come take a shower."

I heard Mandy's lazy voice through the phone before the line went dead.

I laughed bitterly to myself. I had been wondering whether to keep this child.

Now, I had no doubt.

The next morning, I drove myself to the maternity ward of the People's Hospital, intending to get an abortion.

As I approached the hallway, I saw a familiar couple in the distance.

It was Max and Mandy. I immediately slowed my steps and hid around the corner.

Max was carefully helping Mandy sit on a bench in the hallway before he ran off to fetch some forms. I let out a bitter laugh and approached Mandy.

She spotted me and looked startled for a moment before smirking at me with disdain.

"What a coincidence. Are you here for a check-up too?"

After saying that, she deliberately glanced at my flat stomach, her face feigning shock as she exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot! You're infertile, aren't you? Silly me, I didn't mean to offend you!"

Seeing the smug expression on her face, I let out a cold laugh.

"You're actually proud of being a mistress, aren't you? I've never seen someone so shameless."

"Vivian, shut up! If it weren't for me studying abroad back then, you'd never have married Max. You're the third wheel in our relationship, not me!"

Just then, Max returned, holding the forms. Seeing me arguing with Mandy, he rushed over.

He immediately shielded Mandy behind him, glaring at me with fury in his eyes.

"Vivian, what the hell are you doing?! I'm warning you, stay away from Mandy and the baby! If you so much as think of harming them, I won't forgive you!"

"Oh? You won't forgive me. Such big words, Max. What are you going to do, eat me? Kill me?"

Max glanced at the onlookers peeking at us from down the hallway and dragged me into the stairwell.

"Why are you following us to the hospital? What do you want?"

I sneered at him and said sarcastically.

"I'm here to check if my infertility can be cured so I can give you a child. That way, you wouldn't have to pretend to be child-free and secretly have one with another woman."

"Vivian—I know you're hurt because of your infertility, and I was just trying to comfort you. But having a child with Mandy doesn't have to affect our relationship. Please, stop making a fuss, okay?"

At that moment, after he had spent the night in bed with Mandy, he still had the nerve to say this to me.

For a moment, I couldn't tell if the man before me was even human anymore, or if he had any conscience at all.

I stared at him, speaking calmly.

"Max, if Mandy is your long-lost love, let's get a divorce. I'll step aside and let you be together. Then you three can live happily ever after."

Max froze, clearly not expecting me to suggest a divorce.

"No, no, Vivian, don't say that. I never wanted to divorce you. You know that. I can't live without you..."

"You can't live without me, can you? Or can't you live without my father's support? Max, now I finally understand. You knew I was infertile, but you still married me. It wasn't because you loved me. It was because of the benefits I brought you, right?"

I hit a nerve, and his expression turned cold.

"If you insist on seeing it that way, fine. But I'm keeping Mandy's child, and I'm not divorcing you!"

With that, Max opened the stairwell door and led Mandy into the examination room.

As for me, I went and signed the papers for a painless abortion, preparing for surgery.

After the surgery, I left the hospital immediately. By the time I came out, Max and Mandy were already gone.

Back home, I placed my hand on my now-flat stomach, and a wave of sadness washed over me.

Just moments ago, there had been a tiny life full of hope inside me. Now, it was gone.

Life is so beautiful, yet so fragile, much like the love between Max and me over the past three years.

Tears welled up again as I fought to hold back the physical and emotional pain, and I posted a message on my social media.

"Thank you for briefly bringing me hope, only to leave in such a hurry. I hope you find a better mother."

The post was accompanied by a picture of my positive pregnancy test and the notification for the painless abortion.

I thought it was just a simple way to express my feelings, but as soon as I posted it, it caused an uproar.

Most of the comments expressed sympathy, but some gossipers started asking why I had the abortion—whether something had happened between Max and me.

Some were more direct, asking if Max had cheated on me, and if that's why I terminated the pregnancy.

I didn't respond to anyone. I tossed my phone aside, not wanting to deal with it.

At that moment, Max's mother, Anna, who was still in the countryside, called me.

The second I answered, a barrage of insults followed.

"Vivian, you wretched woman! How dare you? When Max married you against our wishes, even though you couldn't bear children, we tolerated it for the sake of your father's investment in his company. But now that you could get pregnant, why would you abort the child?!"

"Did you even discuss it with Max before getting rid of the baby? That's the White family bloodline! You can't just do as you please! Wait until I get there, I'll deal with you!"

Before she could finish, my father-in-law, Tom, took the phone from her.

"Vivian, you disgrace! You've destroyed the future of the White family. You want us to be left without descendants, don't you? Divorce! You have to divorce my son. If you don't want to have children, I'll find a woman who will!"

I couldn't hold back any longer and finally spoke up.

"Don't worry. Your son is more eager than you are. He's already found someone else to have his child. That's why I aborted mine. And yes, I plan to divorce him, so you won't have to bother."

"What? My son has someone else? As long as it's a White family baby, what does it matter? But you—you rushed to abort the child. Is it because it was some other man's child, and you were scared my son would find out?"

I didn't want to argue with these relics of outdated traditions any longer, so I hung up and blocked them.

I couldn't understand why this obsession with having a son was so deeply ingrained in rural culture.

I didn't want to comment on the older generation's backward mindset, but Max, a graduate from a prestigious university, still shared their decaying values. No wonder my father was so adamantly against me marrying someone from the countryside. Some things, it seemed, were hard to change at their core.

No sooner had I hung up on my in-laws than Max called, launching into his own furious rant.

The entire White family was the same. But this time, before he could get far, I hung up on him too, blocking his number as well.

I had reached my limit. I just wanted a moment of peace.

However, not long after, Max stormed into the house, slapping me across the face.

"Vivian, who gave you the right to abort my child?!"