I had been plagued by illness for three years before I finally got a kidney donor.

On the way to the hospital for the transplant surgery, the poor student I had been supporting made a phone call to my wife.

He told her he had admired her for a long time but couldn't bear to ruin our marriage, so he decided to slit his wrists.

My wife left me on the overpass, made a U-turn against traffic and rushed back to comfort him.

I endured the stomach pain and walked five kilometers on the overpass before I finally hailed a cab. When I arrived at the hospital, I was so weak I could barely stand and vomited several times.

The doctor told me I was too late, the kidney had already been given to another patient.

In total despair, I called my wife. She said, "Let's get divorced first. We can remarry once he's emotionally stable."

"You've lost the kidney. There's no point getting worked up. But at least we saved another innocent life," she said.

I remained silent for a long time and softly said, "Alright. Then we're both free now."

The poor student successfully took my place, while I left disheartened and wandered far away.

I was lucky. Before death claimed me, I got another kidney match, met someone wonderful and built a happy family.

Three years later, I ran into my ex-wife.

She went crazy, yelling at me furiously, "You got married again? Didn't we agree we'd remarry in the future? Are you that desperate? Can't live without a woman?"

——

"Nolan, you've been gone for three years. Couldn't help showing up today, huh? You're here for money, aren't you? This event is really important. I'm warning you, stay the hell away. Or you won't get a single cent." She scolded me.

I stood at the airport entrance, getting absolutely torn apart by the woman walking toward me.

It took me a moment to realize, she was my ex-wife, Patricia Walter. And the well-dressed man next to her was Chad Murray.

Back then, Chad wore patched-up clothes. He got on his knees and begged me to fund his college tuition. Moved by compassion, I covered all his living expenses.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think this boy from a remote mountain village had been scheming to take my place from the very start.

After a few years, he now wore head-to-toe designer brands, looking like a typical rich second-generation. Clearly, after driving me out, he had successfully won over Patricia.

After yelling at me, Patricia still didn't seem satisfied. She scoffed coldly with disdain, "I just wanted to save someone back then and you threw a tantrum and disappeared."

She sneered, "I thought you had some backbone. So what are you doing here today? Nolan, look at yourself in the mirror. You're the lowest of the low. You've had a rough life since leaving me, haven't you? Now you finally understand how important money is? Now you realize a successful wife was your greatest support?"

She continued, "Too bad. It's too late. From the moment you acted so childish and disappeared, you lost the right to be my husband. Let me make this clear. Even if you stand in front of me now, I will never remarry you."

I shook my head wordlessly, "You've got it wrong. I'm just here on business."

Patricia sized me up from head to toe, "You're here on business? Can you even afford a plane ticket? If you're here for money, just say it. Don't make up those fancy excuses. It's pathetic."

Chad added with a smug tone, "Nolan, Patricia and I are getting married soon. You showing up like this really puts us in a tough spot. Besides, Patricia's company is growing rapidly. You don't care about your reputation, but we have an image to maintain."

Patricia pulled out a wad of cash from her wallet and threw it right in my face.

"Here's some money, enough to last you a few days. Stay out of my sight." She pulled Chad's hand and walked away in triumph.

I was so angry I couldn't speak. I wanted to chase after them and curse them out, but when I checked the time, I realized my wife's plane was about to land.

I used to always be late picking her up, which made her look at me with such disappointment. Today, I had been working out when I suddenly remembered to pick her up, so I rushed over, still panting, without even changing clothes.

Maybe it was because I was sweating all over and dressed in workout gear that Patricia thought I had come back to beg for a second chance.

I let out a long breath, gathered myself and walked into the terminal. I had a wife who loved me, why should I let two mad dogs ruin my mood?

But as soon as I entered the VIP lounge, I frowned. The usually clean and quiet lounge was noisy and chaotic today. Many people were talking loudly and puffing away on cigarettes, turning the whole lounge into a smoky mess.

Patricia stood at the center, surrounded like a queen by her courtiers, everyone fawning over her.

"Miss Walter is truly a woman among men, her business keeps growing stronger. She's even better than us guys."

"This time, Miss Walter's collaboration with the Alley Group is bound to succeed. She's sure to soar even higher."

"Miss Walter, once you land that Alley order, we hope you'll let us share a sip of the fortune too!"

Patricia was beaming with pride, smiling smugly. Standing beside her, Chad struck a pose like a corporate CEO husband, basking in the flattery.

I started coughing from the secondhand smoke.

A chubby man with big ears walked over and grumbled, "Hey, you're in the wrong place. This is the VIP lounge, not a resting spot for nobodies. Out!"

Unhappy, I pulled out my VIP card. "I'm not in the wrong place. I paid for this."

The man was about to say more, but Patricia came over. She said coldly, "Nolan, are you bleeding yourself dry just to beg money from me? You even shelled out for a VIP lounge?"

Before I could respond, she shoved a few bills into my hand and snapped my VIP card in half, "The money's refunded. You're no longer eligible to be here. So, can you leave now?"

I was so angry I nearly cursed. I called over a lounge staff member.

The staff looked me over and said coldly, "If you don't accept Miss Walter's refund, by regulation, you're allowed to remain in the VIP lounge."

I pointed at the no smoking sign on the wall, "Can you ask them to put out their cigarettes?"

The staff's tone turned even colder, "These bosses have paid the fine. For the next hour, they can smoke as they please. If you can't stand it, you're free to leave. Frankly, some places just aren't meant for ordinary folks."

I took a deep breath in anger, "I'm going to file a complaint."

The staff sneered, "Sir, the VIP lounge is for VIPs. Your status means even if you complain, your influence won't weigh much. To sum it up, I don't care, do as you please."

Patricia looked at me with utter contempt, "Nolan, it's only been three years and you've become such a pathetic joke?"

Chad chimed in with false concern, "Nolan, you should really leave. Staying here will only make you a laughingstock."

A nearby businessman asked Patricia curiously, "Miss Walter, you know this guy?"

The smile on Patricia's face faltered a bit. "Back when I was young and naive, I got involved with the wrong person."

The surrounding businessmen all nodded in agreement, "Totally normal, totally normal. Guys like that just love clinging to the rich.”

They said, "Who hasn't been fooled by a few scumbags when they were young? As long as you realize it, it's fine."

"Now that Miss Walter and Mr. Murray are deeply in love, she's just taken a detour and finally found true love."

"You have to know how bad a scumbag is to appreciate how good true love feels. So in a way, that experience wasn't totally useless." These people ridiculed me without restraint, belittling me.

Patricia, who had once been my wife and knew I had been wronged, didn't speak a word in my defense.

Instead, she pointed at me with disdain and said, "I don't even know how he found out I was meeting Miss Alley here today. Look at him, pitifully showing up to beg for money. It's shameless, absolutely disgusting."

The people around all looked at me with contempt and said, "Sir, a person needs dignity, just like a tree needs bark. You should leave."

"This is a high-end setting for business. Acting like this just repels people, you won't get a dime."

"You have hands and feet, why not work hard? Why always look to get something for nothing?"

I said coldly, "I didn't come here for money. I just happened to run into Patricia."

Patricia sneered, "Oh, so now it's a 'chance encounter'? You really think I'll fall for your pathetic mind games? Nolan, I used to love you, but you've long drained every drop of patience I had."

She wrapped her arms around Chad and looked at me provocatively, "I've found someone new. We're getting married soon. As for you, you're not my first love, nor my apple of my eye, you're just a passerby. Seeing you here today brings back no fond memories. All I feel is disgust at your underhanded tricks."

Someone started clapping. The room full of businessmen erupted into applause, admiration all over their faces.

"Miss Walter is awesome."

"Miss Walter defending her man, so fierce!"

The greasy, bootlicking scene made my stomach churn. I couldn't be bothered to argue with these pathetic people. I turned to leave.

But Chad suddenly stepped in front of me, "Nolan, you're just going to walk away like that? Don't you think you owe me an apology?"

I looked at Chad, confused, "What are you talking about?"

Chad pointed to his leather shoes, "These are custom-made, thirty grand. You stepped on them just now. The leather is scuffed."

Everyone turned to look at me.

One of the rich businessmen said, "How can this man be so poorly mannered? Not just rude, but full of spite too."

Patricia glared at me, "Nolan, you're really becoming more and more vile."

I said, speechless, "I didn't step on him."

Chad gave a cold laugh, "So you're saying I'm lying? My fiancée is the CEO of a publicly listed company. Do you know what kind of status I have? What kind of position? You think I'd waste time making this up?"

After hearing that, Patricia looked at me even more coldly. She yelled at me, "Nolan, did you step on him or not? Stop lying and embarrassing me."

I spat, "Are you crazy? What does any of this have to do with you? How is it ‘embarrassing you'? Patricia, don't flatter yourself. I stopped loving you a long time ago and I didn't come here for you today."

Patricia's face darkened, "Fine. You don't know what's good for you, huh? Then I won't help you either. Pay up in full, or we call the police."

Everyone around them shouted in support of Patricia, "Yeah, call the cops! Teach him a lesson!"