In my fifth year in the United States, my younger brother sent me a message saying he was getting married.

And the bride-to-be turned out to be my first love.

She had no idea who I truly was. Back then, she thought I was poor and left me for a rich heir.

I never imagined that years later, she would end up getting involved with my brother.

Staring at the photos and messages my brother had sent, I was about to reply and put a stop to the marriage.

But just then, my first love sent me a message of her own.

“Ethan Carter, I’m getting married. The wedding will be held in three days.”

“I’m marrying Daniel Carter, the second young master of the Carter family in New York City. You’ve heard of them, right? The Carter Group is a Fortune 500 company, and their wealth could fill the entire city.”

“Once I marry him, I’ll finally rise to the upper class and completely cut ties with people like you—those poor nobodies at the bottom.”

“From now on, we won’t even belong to the same world. You won’t get to see me again. Attending the wedding will be your last chance.”

If she hadn’t messaged me, I would have long forgotten her contact information.

I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.

“I don’t have time. I’m not going.”

“And tell me, do you really love money that much?”

Her reply came back sharp and scathing:

“You idiot, if I don’t love money, do you expect me to love you? What else can you offer besides doing laundry, cooking, and handing over a measly paycheck every month? All you ever did was send me a $100 Valentine’s transfer once in a while. What good is that?”

“Can you give me a mansion? Can you put me in a Ferrari? Can you buy me a Hermès bag?”

“Why should I waste my life suffering with you? I’d rather follow a rich old man!”

“I must have been blind to ever fall in love with you.”

“You must come to my wedding. I need you to see with your own eyes how far apart we are now, how happy I am without you. Only then will you understand how much you wronged me.”

“That’s the only way I’ll ever feel vindicated.”

“You owe me that—you have to come!”

Reading her barrage of messages, I smirked with disdain.

“Fine. I’ll go. As you wish.”

Closing the screen, I stared blankly at the reflection of my own face on the phone.

The mature, refined man I saw was nothing like the penniless boy Sophia Reed had abandoned five years ago.

I had met Sophia when I had just started college—a naïve freshman, still green to the world.

Right after I finished my SATs, my father rushed to bring back his illegitimate son and mistress.

Under the pressure and scheming of my stepmother Margaret Carter, I was thrown out of the family home.

They called it “a necessary trial for a man.”

Sophia had once been my salvation during those years.

She was cold and beautiful, refined and elegant—

yet she only ever showed her gentleness to me.

No man could resist a woman like her, and I was no exception.

Once I fell in love, I swore to make her the happiest woman in the world.

To keep that promise, I attended classes by day and snuck out at night to work part-time jobs.

Even though I only had $200 a month to live on, I still gave Sophia $400 in pocket money without fail.

Those four years of college were the happiest of my life.

After graduation, thanks to a single remark from Margaret, I was forced into the family company, starting at the very bottom.

With no salary during my internship, I kept working side jobs to survive.

On Valentine’s Day or anniversaries, I would transfer her $100 as a token of love.

It wasn’t much, but for me—when a single meal cost only a few dollars—it was a fortune.

But she changed.

Instead of being grateful, she became filled with contempt.

“Another $100? You sent me that in college, and now, with a job, it’s still the same? That’s not even enough for a manicure!”

“All my friends at least get $200 gifts like 1314. Even the worst boyfriends send $800. And you? Barely a hundred bucks. What are you trying to do, feed a beggar? I don’t even have the courage to post this on social media!”

Guilt gnawed at me, and I promised her over and over that one day I’d make real money and give her the best life.

I begged her to wait for me two more years. Just two years, and I would marry her.

But Sophia Reed sneered:

“Two years, two years—how many ‘two years’ does a woman have? With your pathetic salary, when will you ever save enough for a million-dollar dowry? By the time you come to marry me, I’ll already be a thirty-year-old has-been!”

That night, we had our fiercest fight. Neither of us said the word “breakup,” but neither of us sent another message for a month.

She blocked me and moved away.

And just like that, my first love was over.

Later, I climbed step by step to the position of general manager in the Carter Group, multiplying the company’s performance many times over.

But my stepmother, Margaret Carter, feared I might compete with Daniel Carter for the family fortune. So, overnight, she sent me abroad, claiming it was to “expand our overseas business.”

Snapping back to the present, I messaged my assistant, Kevin Johnson:

“Book me a flight back to the United States in two days.”

“And have the limited-edition Pagani shipped over. I want to drive it.”

The moment I stepped out of the car at the hotel entrance, I drew countless stares.

Many of those staring were my old college acquaintances—people who once knew Sophia and me.

“Whoa, what the hell is that? Never seen that brand before. Must be some cheap knockoff.”

“Wait, isn’t that Ethan Carter? The poor loser Sophia dumped back in college!”

“That car frame looks familiar. Isn’t it just one of those new Teslas?”

“Bet he spent a fortune ‘modding’ it. Always pretending to be rich. Sophia, look! Your first love is here—driving some trashy car! Hahaha! Did he really think we wouldn’t recognize it?”

Sophia, dressed in a custom-made wedding gown, stood at the entrance, her eyes filled with expectation as she looked toward the Carter family estate.

Hearing their laughter, she turned. The contempt in her gaze was impossible to hide.

“Ethan, you really went all out just to show up at my wedding, didn’t you?”

“Too bad. Even a Tesla maxes out at thirty grand. No matter how much you modify it, it’s still garbage. It only proves your inferiority complex—nothing more!”

“Seeing you so pathetic now only makes me even more certain—I was right to leave you. No matter how hard a sparrow tries, it can never become a phoenix.”

One of my old roommates laughed out loud and mocked me:

“Ethan, don’t you know? Sophia’s fiancé gave her a Porsche as an engagement gift. Limited edition, studded with diamonds! If you really like sports cars that much, why don’t you get down on your knees and beg her? Who knows, maybe her soft heart will take pity on you!”

Someone jabbed him with an elbow.

“Hey, don’t say that. A man’s pride is worth more than gold. Ethan showing up in a souped-up car is already entertaining enough. Otherwise, how would we get to see something this ugly?”

“Unbelievable! I’ve lived thirty years and never seen someone so desperate to show off. I’ve gotta snap a picture for social media!”

Ever since I left the country, the Carter Group under Daniel’s management had plummeted. Its market value dropped by billions.

If not for my overseas profits propping them up, the family would have been wiped off the map in New York City long ago.

And yet, they had the nerve to use my money to curry favor with women?

Sophia tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and smirked.

“Ethan, my husband says he’ll hire me a driver after the wedding. If you’re really that obsessed with cars, I can put in a word for you. You could drive for me. Consider it repayment for all you did back then.”

I knew they were ignorant, but I didn’t expect them to be this stupid.

I almost laughed, but kept my face expressionless as I explained:

“This isn’t a modified car. It’s a Pagani—worth twenty million.”

“Dollars.”

For a moment, the crowd went silent.

Then came an explosion of laughter.

“Pagani? More like Panini! Did you get the name wrong? Too much fast food must’ve fried your brain!”

“Ethan Carter, wake up. You and Sophia Reed haven’t been in the same world for years. Spending so much effort on this car—are you still trying to win her back?”

“One Hermès bag of hers is worth more than that piece of junk!”

Seeing Sophia’s smug, arrogant gaze, I shot back coldly:

“Win her back? I have no interest in a woman obsessed with vanity.”

“And I despise a woman who’s crawled into the beds of ten different sugar daddies.”

“Only the blind Carter family would treat her like treasure. Rotten roots, rotten branches—no wonder you’re all blind together.”

“Since I’m not welcome here, I won’t attend the wedding. Goodbye.”

I turned to leave, but Sophia lunged forward, slapping me hard across the face.

“You bastard! What nonsense are you spouting?”

“Who had sugar daddies?!”

“You couldn’t have me, so now you slander me? You’ve gone insane with jealousy!”

“You claim you don’t want me, yet here you are, driving a pathetic car just to show off!”

I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and sneered.

“What’s wrong? Should I tell everyone how you used to get into that Maybach waiting outside the school gates?”

“The hotel check-in records were sent straight to my phone.”

“Did you really think I didn’t know?”

“I left you your dignity—it’s you who’s shameless. Let go, or I’ll call security.”

Her composure cracked instantly, her face flushed red with rage.

“You’re lying! Who got into a Maybach?!”

“You came here just to ruin my wedding, didn’t you? I must have been blind to ever love you! Get out—leave right now!”

She raised her hand to hit me again.

I held up my phone.

“I still have the evidence.”

“Try hitting me again, and I guarantee by tonight the entire internet will know just how colorful your past really is.”

I turned toward my car, but Sophia grabbed my sleeve and yanked hard.

“Stop! What evidence? Tell me now!”

“Let me go!”

In the struggle, a loud rip split the air—her wedding dress tore at the hem.

Sophia’s face twisted in fury.

“Ethan, I’ll kill you! This gown was a custom luxury design—cost over a million dollars to ship from overseas!”

“You’re just trying to ruin everything for me!”

I spread my hands.

“You grabbed me first. Not my problem.”

“And a million? Crawl into a few more beds and you’ll get it back easily enough.”

Her eyes went bloodshot as she screamed at the onlookers.

“What are you standing there for? Can’t you see this bastard humiliating me?”

“Beat him!”

“Smash his damn car—I want to see how he pretends after that!”

I rushed in front of the Pagani, blocking it with my body.

“Touch it, and I swear the entire Carter family couldn’t afford the price you’ll pay.”

Sophia lost all reason, shrieking like a madwoman:

“It’s just a broken Tesla, what are you even showing off for?!”

“The Carters’ money could buy your worthless life a hundred times over!”

Several of the classmates surged forward.

“Ethan, you’ve lost your mind! That dress was specially chosen by Daniel Carter for Sophia!”

“Figures—poor men are always trouble. Date one once, and he sticks to you like a leech you can never scrape off!”