Not even a flicker of grief stirred in me.

Crying over that bitch wasn't worth it. She didn't deserve it.

Right then, Prudence came back reeking of wine, Richard's arm wrapped around her waist as if staking a claim, shooting me a smug, taunting smile.

Something complicated crossed Prudence's eyes as she looked at me. She said in a low voice, "I came to pack up my things. From now on, I won't be living here, so you—"

I cut her off before she could finish. "I already threw your things in the dumpster downstairs."

Prudence arched a brow and let out a sigh. "Ernest, isn't that a little heartless of you?"

"Even if we can't be family, at least we can stay friends—"

I cut in again, sneering. "Ms. Pruitt, that's a sickeningly fake thing to say."

If we'd parted on good terms, maybe friendship would've been possible.

But what was this, exactly?

Prudence stabbed me in the back in front of everyone, left me standing there at the company's celebration banquet like a clown while Richard dumped wine over my head, and she didn't so much as glance my way.

And now she wanted to stay friends?

Did she think I was an idiot she could toy with?

Prudence's brow knit slightly, but before she could speak, Richard cut in with that snide tone of his. "Ernest, let's not dance around it."

"Those shares in your hands have to go back to the company."

Prudence chimed in. "Hand the shares back, and I'll give you a million as compensation."

"On top of that, I'll give you another million, call it making up for what I owe you. How's that sound?"

"Two million is no small amount. Spend it carefully and it's enough to keep you fed and comfortable for the rest of your life."

Two million, to buy out the founding shares I held and everything I'd given Prudence over the years?

How cheap.

I said coldly, "And if I don't agree?"

Richard sneered. "Ernest, don't push your luck."

"Don't get too greedy. The consequences are more than you can handle."

So now we were on to threats?

I was about to throw something cutting back at him when Prudence's face darkened. "The shares you're holding don't matter much to the company. Coming here to talk it through nicely with you is already more than you deserve."

"If you think that little bit of stock gives you any hold over me, you're being naive."

"Ernest, don't forget, you signed an agreement with the company back then. The moment you leave, you can't take those shares with you."

"And if I want to force you out of the company, I have plenty of ways."

"Think it over carefully."

Facing Prudence's threat, I genuinely wanted to grab a knife from the kitchen and hack the two of them into mincemeat.

In the end, I held back.

Just as she'd said, forcing me to resign wouldn't be hard for her at all.

After all, even before the company went public, Prudence and Richard had already worked together to strip me of nearly all real power.

I might still be VP at Pruitt Corp, but it was an empty title and nothing more.

A few minutes later, under the gloating, triumphant stares of Prudence and Richard, I signed the share transfer agreement.

Then they tossed down a check and walked off without a backward glance.

They'd gotten what they came for. Naturally, they couldn't be bothered to linger and deal with me any longer.

I looked at that two-million-dollar check, gave a cold snort, and tore it to shreds before dropping the pieces into the trash.

What I threw away wasn't just a torn-up check. It was every feeling I'd carried for Prudence Pruitt all these years.

Let those two have their few days of triumph. When their grand wedding came at the end of the month, I'd settle the account with them properly.

If Prudence and Richard hadn't come tonight to threaten me, I might have stopped at having my family pull their investment and walked away.

But these two had pushed it too far.

So how could I possibly let them off?

Over the next stretch of time, the story of Prudence proposing to Richard in front of everyone at the celebration banquet spread fast online.

The buzz refused to die down. It even outran some celebrity cheating scandals.

At the same time, a flood of smear material about me suddenly appeared online.

A horde of users dragged me onto the trending lists with their abuse.

"Ernest Maddox looks so gentle and refined, who'd have guessed he's this scheming, vicious piece of trash!"

"Jealous of anyone better than him, made life hell for the better-looking men at the company, and kept a mistress and partied behind Prudence's back. No wonder she dumped him!"

"Compared to Richard Gilbert, he's worlds beneath him. Not even fit to carry the man's shoes."

"He actually wanted Prudence to hand over all her shares to him. Has he no shame!"

"I heard he even slapped Richard at the company. That overbearing, bullying streak of his is sickening!"

Almost every word of that smear material online was fabricated out of thin air.

I didn't need to guess. The dirt being slung at me online had to be the work of Prudence and Richard.

Prudence wanted to protect her good-woman image, and with the company freshly public, any stain on her would have been blown up endlessly by her competitors.

So all she had to do was throw the mud at me, paint me as a black-hearted bastard, spread lies and tar my name, and then no one would blame her for dumping me and proposing to Richard.

As for Richard, he couldn't wait to see me ruined.

After all, I'd slapped him in front of everyone at the company not long ago. Of course he hated me to the core, and he'd been looking for any chance to grind me into the dust for good.

The reason I'd slapped him back then was that I'd caught him hitting on Prudence at the office, and he'd deliberately taunted me in front of the staff. I didn't hold back.

And it was precisely because of that slap that Prudence began stripping away my authority at the company, piece by piece.

Did I regret it?

Not at all.

If I could do it over, I wouldn't just slap Richard in public. I'd slap that bitch Prudence right along with him.

I watched the trending complaints and abuse against me with real interest, wondering how many of them were paid trolls Prudence and Richard had hired.

Tomorrow was Richard and Prudence's wedding.

I wondered how they'd react when they saw the surprise gift I had ready for them.

I couldn't help looking forward to it.

On the day of Prudence and Richard's wedding, the venue was packed and lively.

Besides relatives and friends from both families and Pruitt Corp's business partners, plenty of business elites had come to offer their congratulations.

Pruitt Corp had only just gone public, and word was that the Maddox family, the richest in the country, would keep pouring investment into it. A lot of people in business circles saw Pruitt Corp as a rising star, and they all wanted to forge a connection with it, hoping it would earn them favor with the Maddox family. That was why so many business elites had turned out today.

Richard and Prudence were all smiles, greeting their guests warmly. Then they saw me walk into the venue, and the smiles froze on their faces.

It wasn't only them. A few people in the crowd who knew me wore strange expressions, their eyes darting between me and Prudence, murmuring to one another.

"What's Ernest doing here?"

"Didn't he already quit Pruitt Corp? I heard he sold his shares back to Prudence at a premium."

"The way I heard it, he threatened her. Said if she didn't buy his stake at a premium, he'd sell it to one of Pruitt Corp's competitors. So she had no choice but to swallow it and lost over a hundred million!"

"And I heard he made her pay him compensation for 'wasted years' on top of that. Asked for fifty million flat out, and she just paid it, glad to be rid of him."

"What a greedy piece of work."

"He's already taken nearly two hundred million off her. What does he even want, showing up now?"

As the whispers swelled, Prudence and Richard came toward me, both glaring.

Prudence frowned and bit out, "What are you doing here?"

"Weren't you the ones who invited me to your wedding?" I said evenly. "I even prepared a special surprise for the occasion."

Her frown deepened. She was about to say something when Richard cut in with a sneer.

"I honestly thought you wouldn't dare show your face. You got dragged all over the trending pages not long ago, practically a public disgrace. If I were you, I'd find a hole and crawl into it for the rest of my life. Better than parading around making a fool of yourself."

"Ernest, today is our big day, and we don't welcome a disgraced dog like you."

"Get lost. Otherwise I'll call security to throw you out, and then you'll be even more humiliated."

"Like I said," I told them calmly, "I came mainly to give you a surprise gift. I'll leave the moment it's delivered."

Before they could answer, I addressed the whole room. "Everyone, on this happy occasion, I'd like to announce something."

"Starting today, the Maddox family, Pruitt Corp's largest shareholder, is pulling out and withdrawing its investment."

"And every individual and company doing business with Pruitt Corp will become a target for the Maddoxes."

For a few seconds after I finished, the room went dead silent.

Then it erupted.

Plenty of them looked at me as if I were a madman.

Prudence was so furious she laughed, snapping at me, "Ernest, are you done with this circus?"

"Who do you think you are? You think you're the eldest son of the Maddox family, the richest in the country?"

"My patience has limits. I don't have time for your nonsense. Get out, now. I don't want to see you again."

Richard piled on, his face full of mockery. "You think because your name is Maddox, you can speak for the richest family in the country?"

"Did getting dumped by Prudence rattle your brain loose?"

"Ernest, do you even know what you're saying?"

"The Maddox family agreed to invest in Pruitt Corp entirely because of my aunt's connections, and she's right here today. Who gave you the nerve to stand up and say something like this in public? What are you, even?"

I said calmly, "And if I told you I really am the eldest son of the Maddox family, would you believe me?"