After Celine Anderson let her newly-promoted assistant take credit for my billion-dollar project for the ninth time, I handed in my resignation letter.

I also refused to show up in the same place as her.

Whenever she was interviewed by talk shows as a public figure, I would switch off all the screens in the building.

I also got the security guard to stop her from entering even if she brought me a cup of coffee in the middle of a tornado.

To see me, she purposely rescheduled three virtual meetings with foreign companies. So, I immediately bought air tickets to leave the country.

I blocked her everywhere and formatted the hard disk that contained all of our memories from the past decade.

When I was twenty, I studied with her in the university library. When I was twenty-five, I ate the cheapest bread with her when she first started her company. When I was thirty, I finally knew how to let go of things that no longer serve me.

On the ninth time I was accused of sleeping my way up, I came across a photo of her and her assistant kissing. Meanwhile, I was sitting at our dining table with food that had turned cold.

It turned out that our decade-long relationship had been a joke.

However, it was fine. It was not too late to come to my senses.

“Ms. Anderson, there are rumors claiming you owe the miraculous success of your company to Oscar Smith, the former chief analyst. What do you have to say about that?”

With her shocking business growth, Celine had become the youngest person to grace the cover of a financial magazine as “Person of the year.”

When she was asked about her relationship with me, she smiled gracefully at the camera.

“He used to be my employee, but he’s left the company.

“As for the rumor that I’m his fiancee, I hope everyone minds their own business and stops being delusional.”

It was already nighttime. I leaned against the couch and stared at the clock.

Four hours had already passed, but Celine did not call me at all.

A day ago, her company’s market capitalization had hit the billion-dollar mark.

She was extremely joyous as she hugged me. She said that I was her lucky star and that she wanted to formally announce our engagement during tonight’s forum.

I was extremely delighted when I heard that.

I had asked her nine times before to announce our relationship. She always agreed, but then, she would come up with excuses after that.

It was the first time she had brought it up on her own.

I was hopeful when I prepared her speech for her. However, the next day, she delivered a fatal blow to me in front of all the mainstream media.

She also included her assistant’s photo on the company’s founder webpage and announced my departure.

My phone screen kept lighting up on the table. The topic of a poor man’s delusion was trending in the financial space.

I tapped on the news catatonically, and there were thousands of comments. Every single one of them was filled with disgust and ridicule.

[What a joke. If my memory didn’t fail me, this would be the ninth time that Oscar is quoted as the power behind closed curtains.]

[Such delusions. He wanted to marry a rich, beautiful CEO. He should take a good look at himself and see if he’s worthy of that!]

[Ms. Anderson already hinted multiple times that he was acting shady to get her. Now that she’s cleared the air, regardless of how shameless he is, he should get the point now!]

[I’d suggest Oscar to look at the photos of the banquet dinner. The new deputy CEO, Matt White, is a perfect match for our investment goddess. He’s so handsome and talented.]

Following the link, I came across the article, [The Match Made in Heaven].

Celine and Matt were standing intimately in the photo.

She was looking up at him with a bright smile under the chandelier. They were also drinking champagne while locking arms.

When I saw that, my chest throbbed with pain. It was as if the blood in my body had been frozen.

The celebratory dinner I made had gone completely cold, just like my heart.

Just as I was about to throw away the dinner, I heard the digital lock of our apartment door beeping.

When I met her gaze, Celine immediately threw herself into my arms and spoke coyly like how she always did. “I’m sorry, Oscar. Management had a last-minute meeting, and they wouldn’t allow me to leave.”

It was the exact same excuse.

She would use this excuse every time she broke a promise or returned home late.

It seemed she had forgotten that I had set up this company especially for her. No one dared to ask her to work late.

I felt the energy drained out of me. I was too tired to argue anymore.

Celine frowned when she saw the food on the table. “What were you doing the entire afternoon? Why didn’t you clean up the leftovers from lunch?” she asked in displeasure.

I felt a little bitter, but I forced a smile. “You said you’d want to come back and celebrate. You asked me to prepare everything and wait for you.”

Upon hearing that, she immediately felt guilty. Then, she smiled sweetly at me.

The moment I asked if she was truly in a meeting, her face fell.

“Oscar, what do you mean? Sure, I didn’t mention you earlier, but do you have to blow things out of proportion and question me?”

Celine looked angry. In the past, if she showed any sign of anger, I would immediately give in.

I was afraid that anger would ruin her health.

However, I was exhausted.

“I saw the news online.”

Hearing this, she was momentarily stunned before sneering. “It’s all for the company. We need a bigger headline to gather everyone’s attention to earn more money.

“Besides, why are you comparing yourself with an assistant?”

I had also been in the industry for a very long time. Of course, I understood the importance of marketing.

However, how could I allow someone else to take credit for all the hard planning I had done for her?

I gave up on arguing when I saw her sure expression. Then, I immediately stood up.

I threw away all the gifts I had prepared for her into the trash can right before her eyes.

When I left and shut the door, I could hear her frustrated voice. “As if you wouldn’t come back begging and crying for me to marry you!”

I did not hesitate.

I would no longer do that.

Never.

In the elevator, I looked at the changing numbers in a daze.

My phone rang, and it was a call from Matt. I did not expect myself to answer the call.

“Oscar, Ms. Anderson really liked the model that you optimized for me. Next time, just send all of your creative designs to me. Then, I don’t have to trouble Ms. Anderson to do so.

“Of course, I’m very grateful for your support to me and to Ms. Anderson. Don’t worry. We’ll definitely invite you to our wedding as a groomsman.”

Even though I had expected his words, I still felt a numbness in my heart.

Celine and I had met in university. Even though she did not come from a rich family, I never looked down on her for it.

When we were twenty, we were madly in love. I gave up on an investment invitation and started a business with her.

When we were twenty-three, she accepted my proposal. I thought she was my entire future.

When we were twenty-five, her company was set up. I rejected all offers and focused on supporting her.

Over ten years, we supported each other. We were a model couple in everyone’s eyes.

However, everything started to change once she hired a male assistant.

She purposely kept a distance from me in public and indirectly denied our working relationship.

Even though we had been engaged for a long time, she would not let anyone in the company know about it.

After I asked her many times, she finally agreed to officially announce our relationship once the company hit the billion-dollar mark in market capitalization.

However, to help Matt, she kept letting him take credit for my work. It reached a point that everyone in the industry thought I was a useless creep who slept his way up.

My phone buzzed again. I thought it was a spam message and wanted to delete it. However, it was a call from my private lawyer, Theo Black.

“Mr. Smith, preparations for the initial public offering for Ms. Anderson’s new company are complete. As one of the core partners, would you like to submit the documents to the board?”

“No. Scrap it.”

Theo stayed silent for a while before he hesitantly asked, “Do you mean… you want to add even better terms and conditions?”

“Liquidate all the shares under my name and inform the legal department to initiate the intellectual property protection protocol for my core investment strategy model.”

Theo was shocked by the complete change in my attitude. He was dumbfounded for a long while.

Everyone knew that I was Celine’s strongest backing.

I had exhausted all of my network and savings for her so that she would not run into cash flow issues.

I had pulled all-nighters to analyze data and risk so that she would not make the wrong decisions.

To everyone, I was just an average data analyst.

However, I did not hide any of my talent and ability from her.

Despite spending so much effort, she once said to the board of directors indifferently, “Without my platforms, his strategies are just a stack of waste paper.”

At that time, I still naively thought that she only said it to reinforce her authority.

I finally realized that I was just a tool to her.

“From now on, you no longer have to tell me anything about Celine and Harmony Corporation. Treat it how you would treat other businesses.”

The next day, I returned to the apartment to retrieve my personal belongings.

When I reached the study, I heard someone flirting and laughing inside.

The door was not shut. Celine’s back was facing me as she sat on Matt’s lap and acted coyly.

When Matt saw me, he was not affected at all. Instead, he grabbed her face and kissed her passionately.

After that, he asked smugly, “Celine, you gave me Oscar’s data again. He’ll be unhappy when he finds out!”

Celine leaned against his chest and appeared indifferent. “Does it matter? He’s just a tool.

“I’ve gotten sick of him after ten years. If it weren’t for the fact that he’s still useful, I would’ve asked him to leave the company.

“It’s just some data analysis. He’ll give me anything if I just treat him a little better.”

I bit down on my tongue. The bloody taste could not replace the bitterness in my heart.

The scenes of unreserved effort and our sweet past were stabbing me in the heart like a knife.

I finally gave up.

The two of them were still talking while Matt was staring at me viciously.

“Celine, do you think Oscar would take his own life if he saw photos of us kissing?”

Celine laughed and kissed Matt on the cheek.

“Please, you’re the one who purposely did it in front of the media so that Oscar would give up after seeing the trending news.

“That’s so bad of you!”

“But do you like it?”

After Matt said that, he thrusted his hip upward, and Celine giggled.

I did not want to see anything else. When I reached the elevator, I received a security app notification. I had accidentally recorded the conversation earlier.

No wonder every time I asked Celine when we could be official, she would smile meaningfully.

Giving Theo a call, I asked him to send his assistant to pick up my personal belongings and put the apartment up for sale. At the same time, I sent him the voice recording to be kept as evidence.

As for Celine, I no longer wanted anything to do with her.

I had just parked my car at my personal office when Celine sent me a text message.

[Now you’re sending a lawyer to mitigate this? Where’s your dignity?

[I didn’t see him. I want you to come over personally and apologize to me. Then, I want you to resume working on that overseas case that you ruined. Only then will I forgive you.]

In the past, I would have definitely agreed and followed her instructions.

Forget a case like this, I would willingly give up everything for her.

However, that was no longer the case. I simply replied, [Please look at your email for the relevant legal document.]

After Celine saw this, she thought that I was sending her a long list of gifts to choose from like I would in the past.

So, she sounded even more shameless in her text messages.

[Didn’t you throw away all the gifts that were meant for me? Why are you begging for me to forgive you now?

[I saw a few auction items that I wanted. They’re expensive, but you offended me, so you have to buy them for me.]

I did not bother to answer her. Instead, I blocked her number.

The lawyer sent me a text message to inform me that someone was interested in buying my apartment. Very soon, it would be sold.

I nodded and entered my office to work on the pending items.

I did not expect Celine to show up with Matt.

The receptionist stopped her, and she was extremely furious.

“Do you know who I am? How dare you stop me?

“Ask your boss to meet me. If he doesn’t appear within three minutes, he has to bear the consequences.”

She ordered others around smugly, and she was completely oblivious to my decision to cut her off.

The receptionist remembered my instructions clearly, so she did not give in.

Celine was livid. “Just you wait and see. I’ll get Oscar to fire you immediately! Even he relies on me for money, and you dare to stop me?”

After that, she took out her cell phone and realized she could no longer call me.

She was stunned. It was then that she became a little frantic. At the same time, I was about to go out for a business meeting.

Matt pointed at me and immediately asked, “Isn’t that Oscar? I told you. He wouldn’t really let you go. He’s just playing a trick to make you take the first step.”

Celine immediately felt confident and walked angrily toward me. “Oscar, how dare you? It’s one thing to have some attitude, but it’s another to not even answer my calls. Do you think I can’t kick you out of this industry?”

She tried to jab her finger at me, but at the next second, Theo grabbed her hand. He had been standing behind me, and he warned her to be respectful.

I stared at her coldly. “I’d like to see how you plan to kick me out of this industry.”

Celine seemed to be caught off guard. She glared at me in disbelief. “What did you say?”

Matt immediately tried to smooth things over. “Oscar, stop antagonizing her. You’re just being stubborn right now. After this, you’ll still beg Celine to go back to you.”

Hearing this, Celine wore a look of disdain. “You’d better think it through. If you choose to burn bridges now, you’ll never get a chance to be around me ever again.

“It’s not like I’m not giving you a chance. You can beg me for forgiveness in front of everyone and transfer your company’s shares to me. Then, I’ll forgive you.”

I looked at her greedy expression and felt as though I was in a daze. Was I blind in the past? Why would I fall in love with her?

However, Celine was oblivious. When she saw that I was quiet, she thought that I was afraid, so she acted even more arrogantly.

“Don’t forget. You owe your reputation and network to Harmony Corporation. Without me, you’re nothing!

“If you don’t agree to my request, I’ll immediately release a statement and kick you out of the finance industry.”

She looked very certain, and Matt added fuel to the fire. “That’s right, Oscar. Just admit your mistake. If it weren’t for Celine, you’d just be a nobody.”

I found the situation hilarious and snorted. “That’s great.”

My reaction shocked Celine. “What did you say?”

I took a document from Theo and threw it at her.

“Harmony Corporation was just an experiment I did to fulfil my teenage dream. If I wanted to, I could replicate tens of thousands of the same thing.

“As for your so-called opportunity, I can create it myself. Sure, kick me out of the industry. Let’s calculate the amount of compensation you’ll have to give!”