As Julia turned, the man beside her followed suit.

Lawrence's eyes widened when he saw a face strikingly similar to his own. At that moment, every drop of blood in his body seemed to freeze.

Who was the man standing next to Julia? Her first love?

Lawrence had been with Julia for seven years and never knew she had a man she couldn't forget.

A sharp pain pierced his chest. As he turned to leave, Julia called out to him, "Lawrence, you're here!"

At his words, the crowd stared at Lawrence and whispered among themselves.

"Lawrence? Julia's assistant?"

"Why does he look so much like Patrick?"

"Didn't you know? He's the substitute. I heard that while Patrick was away for those seven years, Julia found someone to fill in for him. I guess that's him."

Their words kept rushing into his ears. Lawrence felt as if someone had wrapped their hands around his neck and was choking the breath out of him.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Hale." Julia's first love, Patrick Harrison, approached Lawrence and looked him up and down.

"Sorry, I heard Jules say you don't like attending events like this. But I really wanted to meet you, so I had her invite you."

Noticing the challenge in Patrick's eyes, Lawrence clenched his fists at his sides. "You wanted to meet me?"

He now realized that Julia hadn't canceled her engagement because of him, but because Patrick had returned.

The reason she had him dress up for the banquet was to let Patrick see what he—the substitute—looked like.

The pain in his heart was overwhelming. Lawrence felt his legs go weak, as if he could barely keep himself standing.

"I heard someone say that you look a bit like me. Jules, do you think we look alike?" Patrick tilted his head and asked Julia.

Smiling, Julia casually replied, "It's just a coincidence. He can't compare to you."

Lawrence's heart broke even more at her words. He staggered a step back.

He turned to leave, but Patrick blocked his way.

"Mr. Hale, I haven't had a drink with you yet. Thank you for taking care of Jules all this time. She's a bit spoiled, so I'm sure you've had it tough."

Patrick's condescending tone made him seem like the rightful partner, while Lawrence felt like the other man.

The crowd's eyes were all on him. They were watching him like a joke.

Lawrence forced a smile. "It's my job. I get paid to do it. It's not hard."

"I'm sure you've done more than just your job." Patrick raised his voice and laughed boisterously. "But now that I'm back, there are some things you don't have to take care of anymore."

Lawrence looked up at Julia, but she stood there with a blank expression. She didn't even spare him a glance.

It was as if everything happening right now was none of her business.

Lawrence nodded in disappointment. "Alright, I understand."

He turned to leave but accidentally bumped into a waiter holding a glass of wine.

The red wine spilled all over him, ruining the expensive suit he had bought for the event.

Patrick was startled. "Are you okay, Mr. Hale? Your suit is ruined! Let me get the waiter to bring you a new one so you can change."

"I'm fine."

Compared to Patrick, Lawrence looked utterly pathetic at this moment.

When Julia saw his clothes were ruined and he nearly tripped, she reached out to help him. However, Patrick stepped in first and grabbed her hand.

"Jules, since Mr. Hale doesn't need my help, let's go in. The auction is about to start."

Julia nodded. She retracted her hand and cast a quick glance at Lawrence. "You should go back and change your clothes. Be careful not to catch a cold."

With that, they turned and walked away without looking back.

The crowd began to disperse, but Lawrence stood there, unmoving.

At that moment, he was completely and utterly disillusioned with Julia.

Lawrence had never known he was just a substitute. The moment he saw Patrick, many things he hadn't understood before suddenly became clear.

He now understood why Julia had always loved giving him that particular tie. It was the one Patrick wore.

Looking down, Lawrence felt his eyes begin to tear up.

Back at his apartment, still wearing the ruined suit, Lawrence threw the ring he had so joyfully chosen for Julia onto the table. He stared blankly at the moon outside the window.

He remembered the first time he met Julia. It was at a bar seven years ago.

He had been short on money and worked there as a waiter. Then, he met her. Julia had immediately taken an interest in him and hired him as her assistant.

Over time, Lawrence developed feelings for her. Perhaps sensing this, Julia had invited him to become her lover.

At that time, she hadn't made their relationship public, and he thought it was just a matter of time before it happened.

But now, he understood that he would never be her boyfriend or husband.

This realization brought him to a decision—he would leave her.

The next morning, Lawrence woke up early to resign.

As he headed downstairs, he saw Julia. She had come early in the morning. Knowing he would be asleep, she didn't want to disturb him.

She remembered that his favorite breakfast was the stuffed bread from Auburn Street, so she had stood in line to get it for him.

Seeing her, Lawrence didn't react much.

"Morning!" Julia greeted him enthusiastically. "I bought your favorite stuffed bread. I waited in line for ages. My feet are killing me."

"I'm not hungry," Lawrence replied. He bent down to change his shoes, ready to leave.

Noticing his attitude, Julia was furious. "What's with you now? Do you know how long I had to wait for this?"

"I didn't ask you to do this, Ms. Ware. I need to go now. I don't have time to argue."

She grabbed his arm. "Are you mad because of Patrick?"

Lawrence bit his lip and didn't answer.

Julia sneered. "We were never going to get married anyway. Does it really matter that you're just a substitute?"

Her words cut deeply.

Lawrence shook his head. "It doesn't matter, Ms. Ware. It's getting late. I need to go to work. Let go of me."

At the office, Lawrence sat down at his desk and immediately began typing up his resignation letter.

Once printed, he intended to hand it to Julia, but she wasn't in the office. Her driver came by to pick up some things, so Lawrence handed the letter to him.

"Please give this to Julia," he said.

When Julia received the resignation letter, she was initially shocked, but then she just smiled. "Where would he go without me? Lawrence can't live without me. He's just throwing a tantrum because Patrick came back. He'll get over it. Don't worry."

After resigning, Lawrence felt a sense of relief.

He took a cab home but suddenly realized that this apartment wasn't really his home. It was a gift from Julia, or rather, a place she had used to vent her desires.

Now that he had decided to cut ties with her, he didn't want the apartment anymore.

As Lawrence entered the apartment, he immediately noticed someone had been there. He walked quickly into the living room and found a man sitting on his couch.

"Patrick."

"Hi, Mr. Hale."

Patrick was in his apartment, sitting on his couch, with Lawrence's tie placed in front of him.

"This is my home, Mr. Harrison. Don't you think it's inappropriate to just barge in?" Lawrence's tone was hostile as he stared at Patrick.

He hated it when people showed up uninvited.

"Your home?" Patrick laughed and shook the keys in his hand. "If it were your home, how could I have a key?"

He stood and walked over to Lawrence. "Mr. Hale, don't tell me you don't know that this apartment was a gift from Jules to me. I didn't want it, so she gave it to you."

Looking at Patrick, Lawrence pressed his lips together and clenched his fists.

Even this apartment was Patrick's?

"And this tie…"

"Mr. Harrison, do you have a habit of touching other people's things?"

Lawrence reached for the tie, but Patrick easily dodged his attempt. "How do you know this tie is yours and not mine?

"Don't you know? This tie is my favorite, and the collection in your closet is also my favorite. Let me remind you. Jules doesn't love you. She loves me."

With that, Patrick left.

Lawrence was left alone in the apartment. At that moment, he felt that the apartment was a cage. And he was the little sparrow, trapped inside because of his lack of money.

Patrick was right. It was time for him to wake up.

Lawrence threw away all the gifts Julia had given him, except for the ties.

He had already found a new place to live and was ready to move out.

His colleagues knew he was leaving, and some of them were reluctant to see him go. They organized a farewell gathering at a karaoke bar.

At 8:00 pm, Lawrence arrived at Echo Chamber.

As soon as he walked into the private room, his eyes immediately spotted Julia and Patrick sitting beside each other.

"Mr. Hale is here!" one of Lawrence's colleagues shouted.

Seeing Julia and Patrick, Lawrence wanted to leave, but it was too late. He was already dragged into the room.

"Mr. Hale, you're quite influential. Even Ms. Ware came!" someone joked.

Lawrence frowned. Had he known she would be there, he wouldn't have come.

"Ms. Ware, who's this by your side? Care to introduce?" one of Julia's long-time colleagues asked.

Lawrence lifted his eyes and saw Julia holding Patrick's hand.

"Oops, I forgot to introduce him. This is my boyfriend, Patrick Harrison. He just returned from being abroad."

At that moment, Lawrence thought he heard the sound of his own heart breaking.

He had waited for seven years, hoping Julia would finally acknowledge him as her boyfriend. But now, she was officially announcing another man as her partner.

The mood in the room grew awkward. Everyone looked at Lawrence.

Over the years, he had always been by Julia's side. His contributions to her and her company were well known.

Everyone had assumed that he would marry Julia one day. Lawrence had even believed it himself.

"Come on. Let's all raise a glass to our future boss!" someone suggested.

The crowd started to cheer. Julia glanced at Lawrence. "What about you? You're resigning. Aren't you going to drink?"

Lawrence had developed a stomach problem due to Julia. The doctor had advised him against drinking.

"I can't drink." He then picked up a glass of water from the table. "I'll drink to you with water instead, boss."

He emphasized the word "boss" with bitterness before draining the glass in one go.

However, Julia was not pleased. "What now? Now that you've resigned, you can't even have a drink? You're really testing my patience, Lawrence."

His resignation letter was still in her car. Every time she thought of how Lawrence was acting out of spite, she felt a sharp pang of discomfort.

"Jules, don't do this. Today is Mr. Hale's farewell party. How about this? Mr. Hale, let me toast to you. Thank you for everything you've done for Jules and the company all these years."

Patrick wanted to drink, but Julia stopped him.

"What are you drinking for? Your stomach isn't good. What if you get sick again tonight?"

"That was seven years ago. You still remember? My stomach's fine now."

Julia was insistent. "He won't drink, so why should you?"

Her words were like daggers, piercing Lawrence's heart over and over again. She didn't know about his stomach problems, but she remembered Patrick's from seven years ago.

Lawrence couldn't bear to look at them any longer. He grabbed a bottle of beer from the table, opened it, and began drinking with a frown.

Julia glanced over at him. Seeing him drinking, she couldn't help but speak up, "You said you can't drink, but now you're drinking nonstop. Why do you have to be like this, Lawrence?"

She sneered. "You won't even toast to Patrick, but now you're drinking away. When did you become so petty?"

With that, she stormed out of the room. But before she could get far, a few burly men blocked her path. "Well, well, what a beauty!"

Frowning, Julia tried to walk around them, but they stopped her.

"What do you want?" she demanded.

"What do we want? You tell us." The man at the front, Brandon Foster, waved his hand, and the others immediately stepped forward to restrain her.

Just as Julia was about to call for help, Lawrence appeared.

"Let her go!" he commanded.

"Lawrence, save me!" Julia was scared. Although she was used to being decisive in the business world, she was still a woman, and this situation naturally made her nervous.

"Who the hell are you? I suggest you stay out of this!" Brandon growled.

As soon as he said that, Lawrence had already raised his fist and landed a punch right on Brandon's face.

"Let her go!" Lawrence shouted again as he delivered a powerful kick to Brandon's stomach.

Anger flashed in Brandon's eyes at once. "Mr. Hale! Punching me once is fine, but you should know when to stop! I'll be charging extra money for this!"