My mother-in-law, Susan Thorne, was trapped in a fire, and her life was in grave danger. She called me for help.

When I arrived, I saw a male actor, Maximus Lance, pouring gasoline onto the fire for a variety show’s effect.

I tried to stop him, but he simply threw a lawyer’s letter in my face and said, “Who are you to mess with our show’s filming? I’ll sue you into bankruptcy!”

I smashed the camera and yelled that someone was still inside.

The male actor just lit a cigarette nonchalantly and said, “So? My wife is the fire chief. She’s the one who told them to light this fire.

“Even if someone’s in there, it’s probably just a nobody. She can fix it.”

I saw the ring on his finger. It was the ring I thought would be mine.

I scoffed and dialed 911.

“Hello? I want to report someone for deliberate arson and attempted murder at an abandoned factory.”

I had not finished speaking when my phone was snatched away.

Someone kicked me on my back.

Caught off guard, I fell clumsily. I watched helplessly as my phone was smashed to pieces.

The male actor, Maximus Lance, spat in my face and shouted arrogantly, “This show costs $70,000 a day to film. If you delay us any more, you’d better pay up or rot in jail!”

His overbearing words sent a surge of rage through me. I got up, grabbed him by the collar, and yelled, “There’s still someone in that factory! If somebody dies, can you live with that?”

When I said that, he shoved me away. Malice glinted in his eyes.

“Quit the nonsense! We swept this abandoned factory three times. There’s no one in there!

He turned and yelled at the others, “What are you all standing around for? This person’s sabotaging our shoot! Call the cops already and throw him out!”

The crew members swiftly dragged me out. I shouted until I was red in the face.

“Go ahead! Call the cops! A life is on the line. Let’s see who gets arrested when they show up!”

I got more anxious as I watched the fire in the abandoned factory grow fiercer. My mother-in-law, Susan Thorne, treated me like her own son. I could not let her die in that fire.

I struggled desperately against the crew members. Then, I broke into a sprint toward the factory.

A crew member lunged and tackled me to the ground. Others swarmed in and pinned my arms behind my back.

“You have some serious guts! Nobody messes with Starlight Productions’ variety show!”

“Just wait for the cease-and-desist letter. You’ll be eating prison slop soon enough.”

Maximus stepped on my face and sneered coldly.

“My wife’s the fire chief for this show. What does it matter if someone’s inside? She can handle it for me.”

He showed off the ring on his finger.

I froze when I saw the ring on his middle finger. Willow Thorne had said her wedding ring was damaged during a mission some time ago. She also said she would buy a new pair.

The night before, I saw the wedding ring in her pocket. I was secretly overjoyed and was waiting for her to give it to me.

It turned out she had given it to someone else.

My heart ached at the thought of it. I forced a smile and said coldly, “Maximus, are you saying your wife is Willow?

“Do you have the guts to call her over and have her tell me that herself?”

Maximus kicked me in anger.

“Ha! Who do you think you are? First, you disrupt my show, and now, you dare to covet my wife?

“If I don’t teach you a proper lesson today, I’ll lose face!”

I struggled free from the crew members who were holding me down. Then, I charged straight toward the burning factory.

At that moment, I needed to prioritize saving Susan. The optimal window for fire rescue was the first thirty minutes.

Since the smoke was not too thick, I could still get Susan out.

Maximus stuck out his leg and tripped me to the ground. He grabbed my collar and punched me.

“Nobody has ever dared to disrespect me like this! You want to save someone in there? I’m not going to let you go, just to spite you!”

I was beaten black and blue. Just then, my wife, Willow, walked over and shouted, “Stop it!”

When I saw Willow, I felt a glimmer of hope.

I said urgently, “There’s someone inside the factory! You have to stop filming right now and save them!”

Maximus tugged Willow’s hand pitifully and complained, “Honey, this guy is trying to sabotage the shoot and hold my career back!”

Willow affectionately touched his face as she said softly, “You’re a big star now. Just remember not to be so reckless next time. It could hurt your future.”

She then turned to me with a cold glare.

“I personally set up all the safety protocols for this show. Stop trying to stir up trouble without reason.”

Maximus and Willow’s hands were interlocked. I hated it.

I said mockingly, “The person trapped inside that factory is your mom.

“Willow, are you really going to ignore your mom’s life for this guy?

“You’re a firefighter! You know how critical the optimal rescue window is.

“If you keep stalling, you’ll be the one who kills your mom!”

Willow slapped me hard and looked at me in mockery.

“You would curse my mother just to frame Maximus and ruin his future? What kind of heartless monster are you?

“I inspected that factory myself! Wouldn’t I know if someone was inside?”

I looked her in the eye and said anxiously, “I got a call for help. If you don’t believe me, just look at my phone.”

Just as I tried to show Willow the evidence, I realized my phone had been smashed to pieces moments before by Maximus. It could not turn on.

Maximus then spoke pitifully at the perfect moment.

“Honey, see? I told you he was just looking for trouble.”

Willow’s gentle expressions turned even colder as she looked at me furiously.

“George Miller, now you’ve even learned to lie?! Listen, I’m in charge today, and you’ll not ruin Max’s filming!

“Even if someone’s in that factory, they snuck in after I checked it. If they burn to death, they had it coming.

“Max and I don’t have to take any responsibility for it.”

She looked at Maximus with a gentle gaze and kissed his cheek.

“This show means everything to your career. I’m not letting anyone ruin it.”

Maximus noticed how angry I looked. He pretended to be generous and said, “Maybe we should stop filming after all. A life matters more than anything. If something really goes wrong, it wouldn’t look good for your future either, honey.

“As for the one-million-dollar penalty, I’ll just borrow it from loan sharks and pay it back. A few more months of hard work, and I’ll earn it back!”

Willow’s heart ached when she heard his pitiful words. She turned to me with a glare.

“George, you’ll apologize to every single crew member right now! And you’ll cover all the losses from your little tantrum. If you do that, I might cut you some slack.

“Otherwise, believe me, I’ll put you in prison for three years, minimum!”

Maximus’ fans threw water bottles at me angrily.

“He was probably sent by some rival who’s jealous of how well Max’s doing, right?”

“How trashy can you get? That’s such a disgusting thing to pull off. No one ever taught you how to act right? Were you raised in a barn?”

The fans grew more agitated. Some even rushed over to punch and kick me.

Only when I was covered in bruises did Willow disperse the fans. She gently touched my face and spoke the coldest words in the gentlest voice.

“You’ve caused Max so much trouble. So, for this whole month, you’ll stay by Max’s side and fetch him drinks to make up for it.

“This punishment is already pretty light, George. Don’t reject the offer, and stop making a scene!”

Seeing that condescending look in her eyes left a bitter taste in my mouth.

In the past, Willow and I both landed stable government jobs after passing the interviews. We were both swamped with work. Every day when we came home, the house felt cold and empty.

She complained to me that we were just roommates at that point, not husband and wife. She said it was not a home anymore.

To give her a sense of home that she wanted, I quit my job and became a stay-at-home husband. I became her strongest supporter.

Before I quit, I accomplished a major achievement. My bosses figured that, since Willow was my wife, they would give her credit as a stepping stone toward her promotion. That was how she became the youngest fire chief on the force.

I used to think she truly loved being a firefighter. I thought saving people and helping the community meant everything to her.

But I never expected her to change so much. She had become the kind of person I hated the most. I hated those corrupted by power.

Willow became impatient when she saw me standing in a daze. She humiliatingly patted my face.

“What’re you just standing there for? Can’t you see Max’s shoe fell off? Now, put it back on him.”

Seeing her deliberate cruelty, my feelings for her completely faded. I took a deep breath and said seriously, “Willow, I want a divorce.”

Willow froze for a moment. A strange emotion flashed in her eyes.

“Divorce? Have you really thought this through? I’m not forcing you. This is all you.”

I heard the excitement in her voice. I realized she had wanted to divorce me for a long time. She just wanted me to be the one to suggest it first and take the blame.

It was no wonder she had been so cold toward me these past few months. In bed, she would not let me touch her at all.

I looked at her and said sarcastically, “The guy you’re cheating with calls you his wife. You really expect me not to take the hint?

“Don’t throw around false accusations like that! Calling someone ‘wife’ is just an intimate nickname in our circle. My fans all call me ‘husband’ too.”

In front of the fans, Maximus quickly tried to distance himself from the situation.

Willow shot me a glare. She then pulled out a divorce agreement from her bag.

“Watch your mouth!”

Seeing that she had the divorce agreement ready, I let out a bitter laugh. She had clearly prepared it a while ago.

I flipped through the divorce agreement and frowned. She wanted me to leave the marriage with nothing.

“Willow, you’re the one who cheated. Yet you want me to walk away with nothing?” I said in disbelief.

“So?” Willow made it seem like this was all very casual.

“Back when we got married, you made a vow. You said that no matter what happened between us, you’d leave with nothing. You said all the assets would go to me so that I could live a proper life even without you.”

I signed the divorce agreement without hesitation. Seeing her delighted expression, I scoffed.

She seemed to have forgotten that my assets were pre-marital property. Even if I signed the agreement, the law would not recognize it unless I provided proof of my own contribution.

What was more, the commendations that our bosses had given her would be ruthlessly revoked once they found out she had divorced me. None of that could be decided by a simple contract.

After I signed it, I watched her lean intimately against Maximus’ chest. Watching her sweet smile made my heart ache.

We had vowed at our wedding to be each other’s forever. In the end, we did not even make it to the seven-year of our marriage before that vow was broken.

Feelings really were the most fickle thing of all.

After signing the document, I threw the divorce agreement back at her. My face turned grim as I looked toward the factory where the fire was growing larger.

The optimal rescue window was almost gone. I had to save Susan immediately.

Willow saw how clean and decisive my actions were. She felt uneasy. I had loved her deeply. How could I act so ruthlessly?

She called out to me coldly, “Hold it right there! You haven’t even apologized to Max yet. You haven’t worked as his assistant yet. Where do you think you’re going?”

I shook off her hand. My eyes were red with rage as I glared at her.

“I’m going to save your mom! Maybe you can stand by coldly and watch your mom burn to death, but I can’t!”

Willow saw my resolve. She started to have doubts.

Could it be that her mom really was trapped inside the factory?

Maximus, however, held up his phone and said innocently, “But Susan sent me a video half an hour ago. She said she was out of town on vacation. She told me to take good care of you.”