Wendy's ashes were taken back to her hometown by her daughter, Carrie Smith. As a daughter-in-law of this family, I accompanied her to visit the place where Xavier grew up.

A mourning tent had already been set up, but the coffin placed in front of the memorial was completely empty. The moment my father-in-law, David Smith, saw me, he stormed over and started yelling.

“Lily! How could you make the decision to cremate Wendy without consulting anyone? Don’t you know that in our hometown, it’s a tradition for people to be buried where they were born?”

Other villagers joined in, scolding me with the same tired remarks.

All I could do was shrug helplessly. “What else could I do?”

“Xavier didn’t tell me anything about these customs, and I could only follow the hospital’s recommendations. If I could’ve reached Xavier, I wouldn’t have had to make this decision. But both his phones were off. What was I supposed to do?”

That was when they all realized that the ashes were already back, yet Wendy’s only son still hadn’t shown up.

Carrie, wrapped in mourning clothes and crying her eyes out, immediately sprang to Xavier’s defense when someone criticized him. “Don’t you dare badmouth my brother! He’s been so busy with work. Don’t you understand how important that is?”

“No matter how busy he is, how could work be more important than his own mother’s funeral?”

“Don’t listen to her nonsense!” Carrie snapped, glaring at me. “She must’ve done this on purpose! She didn’t tell Xavier on purpose. Otherwise, how could he not come?”

Carrie sounded so righteous that I didn’t even bother arguing. Instead, I took out my phone and played the recording of Xavier’s exact words:

“It’s just a car accident, right? She’s not dead yet. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it if she dies.”

David who had been sobbing quietly, immediately erupted in rage, shaking with anger. “Ungrateful brat! How could he say something like that?”

I stayed in the village throughout the funeral, following their many customs. While I was in the middle of the mourning ritual, my assistant from Jasper City sent me a message that Xavier had returned to the office. The moment he heard the news, he rushed back and was now on his way.

Jasper City was a two-hour drive from the village. By the time Xavier arrived, everything was over. All he could do was kneel in front of Wendy’s memorial and the empty coffin, crying hysterically.

“Mom!!”

Then he turned on me, tears streaming down his face. “Lily, why didn’t you tell me my mom had an accident?! You did this on purpose, didn’t you?”

Before he could grab me, David struck him with a wooden stick, knocking him to the ground. “Ungrateful brat! How dare you blame Lily? Wasn’t it you who said, ‘We’ll deal with it if she dies’?!”

Xavier froze, lying on the ground in stunned silence. After a long while, he began sobbing, mumbling, “I thought it was her mom who got in the accident… I didn’t know it was my mom…”

This time, it was Carrie’s turn to explode. Afraid his words would upset me further, she shouted at him, spittle flying. “What do you mean you thought it was her mom?! How could I have such a shameless brother? You married into her family, and everything you have now is because of Lily. And yet, you don’t even care about her family’s life or death?”

The whole family took turns berating and hitting Xavier. I, however, didn’t have the time or patience to stick around for the drama. I turned and left, heading back to Jasper City.

Watching their family put on a show in the countryside was a waste of my time. I would rather use that time to prepare for my divorce. A man like him, who had been living off my family while contributing nothing, didn’t deserve another dime from us.

So, I went to the most reputable lawyer in Jasper City. I handed over our prenuptial agreement and evidence of Xavier’s affair.

After reviewing everything, the lawyer confidently assured me, “Miss Carson, given this situation, it’s entirely possible to ensure Xavier leaves the marriage with nothing.”

“Divorce? I don’t agree.”

My dad immediately dismissed my words, placing his hands on his hips in anger. “You chose to marry Xavier yourself, and now that I’ve started preparing to groom him as my successor, you want to divorce him?" “

“He cheated on me. Why should I stay with him?” I shot back. Then it hit me. “Dad, are you saying you plan to pass the company over me and give it to Xavier?”

Even though I was the only child in the family, my dad had never once considered me as his successor. He didn’t hesitate to nod. “Of course. What sense does it make for a woman to inherit the family business?”

I had married Xavier for two reasons. One, he had been good at making me happy back then. And two, my dad had promised that once I was married, he would slowly hand over control of the company to me.

But now, it was clear. That promise had been nothing but a trap.

“Lily, I love you, but women just aren’t suited to run a company. It’s something men are naturally better at,” he said, launching into his tiresome lecture.

I didn’t want to listen to his long-winded nonsense any longer. I turned on my heel and stormed upstairs to my room. Xavier only dared to treat me the way he did because my dad was enabling him.

Initially, Xavier was just a “freeloader” and a “live-in son-in-law.” But with my dad’s backing, he had risen in the company from holding a meaningless position to actually wielding real power. People’s perceptions of him had completely changed. Meanwhile, I, simply because I was a woman, was never allowed to participate in managing the business.

I vented my frustration in my room for a long time, tearing things apart until the place was a mess. I had just sat down to catch my breath when I heard Xavier’s voice downstairs.

“Dad, Lily is so unreasonable. I was away on a business trip, and she didn’t even tell me about my mom’s accident. Because of her, I missed my mom’s final moments!”

“That’s definitely Lily’s fault,” my dad replied, but he softened the blow. “Still, don’t be too harsh on her. She’s been spoiled since she was a child, so of course she has a bit of a temper. It’s good that you’re understanding. A marriage lasts when both sides are willing to compromise.”

If it weren’t for everything that had happened recently, I wouldn’t have known how my dad and Xavier talked about me behind my back. He was always spouting moral lessons, yet completely ignored Xavier’s affair, twisting the narrative to make it seem like I was the one causing trouble.

With my dad’s indulgence, Xavier felt free to carry on his affair with the secretary the moment he returned to the company. Each time he booked a hotel room, the expenses were charged to my supplementary card.

When I confronted him about it, Xavier responded impatiently. “Those hotel bills were for business meetings with clients. What would a woman like you know about negotiating deals?”

In front of my dad, Xavier piled on the accusations.

“Lily, what’s your problem? You’re always suspicious of everything I do. I work tirelessly for this family, and yet all you do is doubt me. You don’t have even a shred of the qualities of a good wife and mother!”

I had hoped my dad would defend me, but instead, he nodded in agreement. “A woman’s role is to handle the household affairs. Men do have it tough out there in the business world. Xavier isn’t wrong.”

I couldn’t take it anymore. I grabbed a glass of water and splashed it over both of them. “You two seem like you’d make a better couple than me and Xavier!”

“Lily! You have no say in this household. Stop causing a scene!” my dad barked.

I stormed back to my room and immediately placed an international call.

If I wasn’t allowed to have any say in this house, fine. I would bring in someone who could set things straight.