I, Lilian Newton, am the top luxury goods repair specialist. 90 percent of the store's revenue comes from me.

Three years on the job, I turn a little shop that nearly goes bankrupt into a nationwide chain.

Just because I am two minutes late to work, the new manager locks the front door and plans to take the staff on a trip.

I ask her why I was not informed.

She scoffs and says, "The capable should do more work. We are going on a trip. You stay behind to work overtime. If you can't handle it, then get lost!"

I laugh in exasperation and call my husband right away. "I hear you're planning to fire me. Is that it?"

The manager, Kate Bell, snatched my phone out of my hand and ended the call before the person on the other end of the line could get a word in.

She glared at me and said, "Trying to tattle, are you? I'll have you know that Mr. Samson is the one who made these arrangements."

I smiled. "Is that so?"

Kate grinned wickedly as she patted my shoulder. "The most valuable quality a person can possess is a sense of self-awareness. You need to think carefully about your own status. You're just a basic employee. What gives you the confidence to think that you can challenge me?

"You have two options. Either you work overtime, or you pack your things and get out of my sight."

My colleagues couldn't bear to stand by and do nothing anymore when they saw me being humiliated. They began sticking up for me.

"Just let it go. Most of our patrons are Lily's long-time customers. We're going to be in trouble if she leaves."

Fortunately, there were still people who knew that I was a core member of this shop.

"Lily's skills are second to none in this industry. You'll just be wasting her talents if you force her to do regular sales. You should treat Lily with more respect, Ms. Bell."

"All of us will be in hot water if you chase her off."

Kate's expression turned stormy. Her eyes glinted fiercely as she shouted, "It seems the entire world has gone mad! How dare you talk back to me when I'm bringing all of you on a trip? You ungrateful wretches. You're the ones who encouraged her bad habit of showing up late every two days."

I waved my hand and smiled at my colleagues, feeling glad that most of them were good people. Kate was the only ungrateful one among them.

"It's fine. You don't have to defend me."

The assistant manager, Claire Bernard, was usually all smiles and did everything she could to curry favor with me. However, she quickly changed her tune when she realized that Kate had opened up an opportunity for her to belittle me.

She sighed and said, "I've always shown you respect, Lily. You already benefited a lot by taking advantage of our male clients. Why don't you just apologize to Ms. Bell? We can put all of this behind us once you do."

"Is that so? Did I get in your way? Why don't you take a good, hard look in the mirror and think about whether you're worthy enough to challenge me?" I retorted mercilessly.

Claire used to always beg me for help whenever she faced a problem she couldn't solve. Now that Kate was taking the lead to harass me, she nearly tripped over herself in her eagerness to kick me when I was down.

"What do you mean?" Claire exclaimed furiously.

I shot a look of disdain at her before I swept my gaze over the interior of the shop. I had been in charge of decorating the shop when it first opened.

"Gilded Ages only managed to become the most successful business in the industry because of me. If you fire me, the shop will close down in less than two weeks."

Some of my colleagues nodded in agreement.

Kate and Claire burst into raucous laughter. They laughed so hard until they began struggling to breathe and had to lean against the wall to catch their breath.

Tears of mirth spilled down Claire's face. "All of us know that you used your looks to seduce those rich men into giving you their money, Lily. It's fine if you want to lie to us, but don't try to fool yourself."

"Fine."

I didn't feel upset at all. On the contrary, my body suddenly felt incredibly light.

I knew that Gilded Ages would never have achieved such tremendous success within three years without me. I had built it from the ground up, turning it into a massive business using my connections and skills.

I wondered if these parasites had forgotten their places because I had been too good-natured.

Kate said nothing else and began ushering everyone onto the bus.

Just then, a cab stopped in front of Gilded Ages. The door swung open to reveal a familiar-looking woman.

She greeted Kate like they were old friends before saying, "Nice to meet you, everyone. I'm Gilded Ages' new luxury goods restoration specialist, Rebecca Huntington. You can call me Becca. I hope we can build a good rapport during this trip. Everyone will also receive a 1,000 dollar raise every month!"

I smiled as I looked at Rebecca.

An interesting character had just joined the fray.

I was wondering why Rebecca looked so familiar. It turned out she was the same specialist who had failed to restore a limited-edition handbag six months ago.

She had sent someone to beg me for help, and I had easily solved the issue.

An internationally certified restoration specialist like me was extremely rare in the industry. I wondered if Kate knew that she was going to ruin Gilded Ages' reputation by hiring an incompetent specialist like Rebecca to replace me.

But well, the store's reputation was going to go down the drain once I left anyway.

Feeling amused, I said, "Have you forgotten about the huge blunder you made six months ago, Ms. Huntington? Did you already forget about how you became the laughingstock of the industry? Do you have the memory of a goldfish or something?"

My colleagues covered their mouths to muffle their laughter.

"Why did she hire the disgrace of the industry?"

"I know, right. Her skills are probably far inferior to Lily's. What if she accidentally identifies a counterfeit as a real product?"

They hadn't bothered to lower their voices as they discussed among themselves.

Rebecca frowned slightly. A stern expression crossed her face as she said, "You can't beat me, no matter how skilled you are, Lilian. Not only can I provide excellent service to our clients, but I also have a good grasp of the lower-tier markets and can integrate both audiences into our business plans."

She arched her brow and continued haughtily, "Overestimating one's skills because of easy circumstances is a one-way ticket to a person's downfall. You sure are something else for having the guts to spout nonsense when you're about to be kicked to the curb like trash."

I burst out laughing. After all, no one had the authority to fire me except for the boss of Gilded Ages.

Rebecca grew visibly uncomfortable when I scrutinized her.

"You're right. You know that your skills are abysmal compared to mine, so the only way you can feel superior to me is by being appointed to a position above me. Can you really tell me that you managed to secure your position with your skills? What a joke."

I stared at Rebecca as she swallowed nervously.

The people around us scrutinized Rebecca as well. Their gazes felt like blades that cut deeply into her pride.

Rebecca hastily pulled out a document. She puffed out her cheeks and glared daggers at me.

"Look for yourself! Mr. Samson personally approved my letter of appointment. I'll have you know that he's also the one who told me to replace you. Oh, and one more thing. We're getting married next month, which will make me your boss as well."

I was momentarily stunned by her words.

It was no wonder Kate and Rebecca had the guts to behave so preposterously. They had someone supporting them behind the scenes.

No one knew about this, but Terence Samson was my husband. He was also the reason why I had willingly worked as a low-level employee in Gilded Ages for so many years.

Five years ago, the Samson family attempted to make a name for themselves in the fashion industry. Unfortunately for them, they failed spectacularly.

Backed into a corner, Terence's father, Tom Samson, sought out Dad and used their friendship to ask him for help.

They used to be classmates. Dad's family circumstances weren't great when he was a student, and he could only afford to eat bread for most of his meals.

Tom ended up taking charge of Dad's meals for an entire year, which Dad was incredibly grateful for.

As a result, Dad asked me to repay Tom's kindness on his behalf.

Tom ended up asking me to start a business in the second-hand market for luxury goods.

Many people flocked to Gilded Ages because of my reputation. It didn't take long for the shop to become famous.

Terence had also professed his love for me around that time.

Suspecting that the Samson family was just trying to tie me down, I repeatedly rejected Terence's advances, advising him not to use his future to ensure the shop's continued prosperity.

However, Terence had been adamant about marrying me. In the end, I caved in and agreed to date him with marriage in mind.

Terence's betrayal had blindsided me. It seemed that, from his perspective, I had exhausted my usefulness. And so, he didn't hesitate to replace me with Rebecca.

I had placed my confidence in the wrong person.

I pursed my lips and looked at Rebecca. "Do you know that Mr. Samson is my husband? Aren't you afraid of being called the other woman?"

Rebecca suddenly burst into laughter. A hint of mirth flickered in her eyes as she exclaimed, "What a joke! You're just one of his employees. Who do you think you're fooling?"

Kate chimed in, "In what world would Mr. Samson ever have eyes for you?"

A BMW suddenly appeared on the scene and stopped between us at that moment.

Terence, dressed in a black, tailored suit, got out of the car. He immediately approached Rebecca and elegantly grabbed her hand, saying, "Don't be scared."

Terence's lips curled up into a smile as he waved his phone.

"Rebecca and I were on the phone the entire time, so I heard everything that you said. I'm tired of making up excuses, Lilian. I only married you because I wanted to use you. Gilded Ages doesn't need you anymore since it's an established business now. I can also chase after my own happiness."

Kate and Claire grinned at each other when they exchanged glances.

"I only married you because the Samson family failed to break into the fashion industry and had no choice but to switch to the luxury goods market. As the successor of the Samson family, I have the right to act stubbornly. I refuse to be stuck with you for the rest of my life," Terence continued.

I had expected Terence's shamelessness, but I was still astounded by his brazen behavior. I never thought that a person could act so outrageously.

I put my hands behind my back and curled them into tight fists. I tightened my grip until my knuckles turned white, forcing myself to calm down.

"Forget it. Call your father right now. I want him to personally tell me that he wants to fire me," I said.

Panic flickered across Terence's face for a split second before his expression morphed into one of fury.

"We're all adults here. No need to tattle to my father. Besides, I'm the boss of Gilded Ages. No one can tell me what to do!"

Kate chimed in mockingly, "Are you deaf? Mr. Samson is telling you to get lost! Why are you still standing there?"

"Stop causing a scene in front of our store, Lilian," Claire said smugly. "The world of adults is very realistic. The neighbors are going to make fun of you if you refuse to leave."

There were glaciers in my eyes as I forced a smile onto my face.

"Don't think too highly of yourself, Lilian. You're nothing more than the Samson family's watchdog. If your owner refuses to feed you, you'll just have to beg for scraps on the streets," Rebecca snarked.

"You have a death wish, don't you?" I roared as I lunged at Rebecca.

I shoved Terence aside and slapped Rebecca hard across the face.

Rebecca shrieked as she held her cheek.

Terence knocked me aside, stretching his arms out as he stood in front of her protectively.

"Take your frustrations out on me if you're angry, Lilian! If you lay another finger on Rebecca, I won't give you a single cent when I divorce you!"

My stomach turned as I stared at Terence's face.

In the last five years, Terence has always told me to take business trips or work overtime to meet clients. Whenever we had dinner with a client, he would always force me to drink to please the client.

I always assumed that Terence was just a business-minded man, which was why he didn't know how to consider my feelings.

However, he was more than willing to shield Rebecca behind him as he haughtily berated me, even though I was his wife.

I clenched my fists and suppressed my repulsion. "Do you feel nothing for me, Terence? You hid your true intentions so well for the last five years."

Rebecca shook her head. The corners of her lips were still stained with spit. Pride surged through her since Terence was protecting her. She didn't dare raise her hand against me because I could easily repel her attack, so she chose to hurt me with her words instead.

"Lilian, do you know why you and Mr. Samson still have no children even though you've been married for five years? I bet you have no idea that the vitamins that you've been taking are actually birth control pills!

"Mr. Samson got tired of a workaholic like you a long time ago! He hates that you don't act like a woman at all. In fact, he would rather take care of his needs himself than touch you."

Terence averted his gaze and tugged on Rebecca's arms. "That's enough, Becca!" he hissed.

He knew that I had visited the hospital several times for this very issue, and he had always discreetly hinted that the fault lay with me.

"Is she telling the truth, Terence?" I asked.