Five years ago, I lost my memory in a car accident. Eira Jones had claimed she was my beloved.

She saved me, cared for me, and we naturally got married.

For five years, I managed every aspect of our home for her. As I tended to her every need with unwavering devotion, I was convinced I was the happiest husband in the world.

But as I was about to tidy up the study, I overheard Eira and her childhood sweetheart talking.

“Eira, these past five years, Vedran Clarus has been utterly devoted to you. He just hasn’t chewed your food for you! I’m getting jealous.”

Eira kissed his cheek affectionately. “Silly boy, those chores are his responsibility. I’d never let you do them.”

Furious, I burst through the door and accused Reed Harris of being a shameless homewrecker.

But to my shock, he showed his marriage certificate to Eira. He declared that I was the third wheel in their relationship.

As we shoved each other about, my head slammed into the bookshelf, and my memories returned.

Apparently, I was the sole heir to the city’s wealthiest, the Grant family.

I watched as Eira ranted accusations at me, and the fair-faced, pretty boy in her arms feigned hurt.

I turned and dialed my childhood sweetheart’s number. “Elena Gibson, your fiance is being bullied!”

“Vedran! I finally got through to you!

“I’ve pinned the location. In three hours, I’ll be there to take you home.

“Wait for me!”

Elena Gibson’s voice on the phone was familiar and reassuring. It made me feel reassured.

“Okay.”

After hanging up, I washed the bleeding wound on my forehead with cold water.

My reflection in the mirror was deathly pale, yet my eyes no longer held the meekness and confusion of the past five years. Only frigid ice remained.

My name was Vedran Clarus, or rather, I just finally remembered that my name was Vedran Grant, the sole heir of the Grant family.

After treating my wound, I stepped out of the bathroom.

Eira Jones stood on the second-floor corridor while looking down on me. She still protectively clutched Reed Harris in her arms. His expression was twisted with hurt.

“Hey, Vedran, if you’re not dead, stop playing dead!” Her voice dripped with disgust.

“You could have dodged the blow just now. Why did you crash into the bookshelf on purpose? Do you know how scared Reed was? Come over here and apologize to him right now!”

These shameless words felt like a steel needle piercing through my heart.

I had endured five years as the passive “Vedran Clarus” for a woman like this.

Countless memories flooded my mind like a tidal wave. The life of “Vedran Grant” felt as vivid as yesterday.

What followed was a torrent of hatred.

Five years ago, I awoke from a car accident with no memory at all.

Eira had held my hand and gently told me that she had been my fiancee of many years. She said that she was the only person I could rely on in my life.

I had believed her and clung to her like a lifeline as I followed her home.

She did not just erase my past, but also gave me a false identity by obtaining a fake marriage certificate that seemed utterly ridiculous in hindsight.

Over those five years, I had managed every aspect of her household and allowed her to pursue her career without a care.

I had even scrimped and saved for an entire month to buy her the finest gifts, all so she could hold herself with dignity during her social engagements.

I believed my sacrifices would earn her love.

In truth, everything that just happened revealed that my five years of devotion had been nothing but a thrilling game to them.

When Eira caught my unwavering stare, an inexplicable flicker of panic flashed across her face. However, it was quickly replaced by impatience.

She spat, “Hurry up and make dinner. Reed is hungry.”

Then, she swept Reed back into the room and left me alone.

I stared down at my rough hands. Once slender and strong from playing piano, they had since been covered in thin calluses from household chores.

With a bitter laugh, I returned to my room and locked the door.

The time displayed on my phone screen showed two hours and fifteen minutes remaining until the three-hour deadline.

Fine, I would play along with those two a little longer!

When Eira and Reed emerged from their room and saw the empty dining table and cold stove, their expressions darkened instantly.

“Vedran Clarus! Where the hell have you been? Where’s dinner?” She stormed into my room and kicked the door open.

“I’m tired. I don’t feel like cooking.”

Eira snorted as if hearing the biggest joke in the world. “You’re tired? What could possibly tire a man who stays home all day? Get in the kitchen and cook!”

“Oh?” I raised an eyebrow. “In that case, why not have your ‘legal husband’ do it?

“After all, I’m just a maniac who’s taken someone else’s place, right?”

I repeated Reed’s exact words back to her, and Eira’s face flushed from pale to crimson.

She probably had not expected me, someone who had always obeyed her without question, to suddenly grow fangs.

Reed stepped out from behind her with his arms crossed. His voice dripped with sarcasm. “Eira, look at him. What kind of attitude is that?

“We’re just asking him to cook a meal. He’s acting as if we owed him something.

“You must’ve spoiled him rotten over these past five years!”

He turned to me and thrust his chin out haughtily. “Vedran, I advise you to remember your place.

“You eat our food and live under our roof. Isn’t it only fair to do some chores? Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.”

I laughed. Tears welled up in my eyes.

“Your roof?” I rose and walked toward them. My gaze was fixed on Eira.

“Eira, tell me. Whose villa is this, exactly?”

Eira’s eyes darted nervously as she stammered, at a loss for words.

The villa had been purchased shortly after I lost my memory. She had coaxed me into buying it with a bank card that came from who knew where.

When I thought about it, that card must have belonged to my family, the Grant family.

She had used my money to buy the house. Even so, she had led me to believe, without a single mark on her conscience, that I was the one relying on her to survive.

“And you.” I turned to Reed. “That designer coat you’re wearing must’ve cost a pretty penny. I wonder which card it was charged to?”

Reed’s expression darkened.

I stepped closer, sneering coldly. “It’s Eira’s supplementary card, isn’t it? Don’t you know who’s been paying the bill on the primary card every month?”

Over the past five years, Eira’s career had only just taken off. Her income could not possibly cover such extravagant spending.

I had paid for everything.

I once thought it had been proof of Eira’s love. Out of love, she had entrusted her money to me. I finally realized that I was nothing but their human ATM.

Reed was rendered speechless by my question, but within a second, he straightened his back. Far from showing shame, his face flashed with defiant arrogance.

“What of it?” He snapped, frowning. “Vedran, what gives you the right to act so high and mighty? If Eira hadn’t taken pity on you and picked you up five years ago, you’d probably be wallowing in some filthy gutter right now!

“Every penny you spend, every bite you eat, is a gift from Eira! Without her, you’re nothing!”

Eira shielded Reed behind her, glaring at me. “Vedran, what is wrong with you?

“I worked my butt off to build a home for you. I trusted you with the finances! Your money is my money, isn’t it?

“I provided you with a life free from want. What more could you possibly be dissatisfied with?

“What’s wrong with spending a little now and then to buy Reed a new outfit? What gives you the right to yell at me like this? Don’t forget that I supported you for five whole years!

“Don’t think a few scrapes and bruises would make you some big shot now. Let me tell you, without me, you’re nothing!”

“Is that so?”

I watched her face flush crimson with guilt, and the last shred of lingering affection vanished from my heart. I wrenched my hand free from hers.

“Eira, we’ll soon find out who is nothing without whom.”

Eira, however, fixed her gaze on me. “Who says you could leave me?

“So what if the marriage certificate is fake? We truly lived together for five years. Isn’t it all fine as long as our feelings are real?

“Rest assured, to the outside world, you’ll always be my husband.”

“Eira, Vedran must have been deeply hurt. We should give him some time to adjust.”

As he spoke, Reed smirked viciously. He deliberately emphasized each syllable in “Eira.”

He turned to me with an air of superiority. “Speaking of which, I wore Eira out last night. Go change the sheets and wash them.

“Remember to hand-wash them. They’re silk. Don’t ruin them in the washing machine.”

As he spoke, he touched the love bites on his neck. It was almost as if he was flaunting them.

Eira also shot me a glance, silently implying it was all perfectly normal.

“Reed is right. You should find more things to do. That way, you won’t have time for more wild thoughts.”

She flashed Reed a bashful smile. “I’m not tired. Let’s continue tonight.”

I watched them banter back and forth, like two clowns putting on a show.

The wall clock read half-past seven. Elena would not arrive for another half hour.

The thought of going home soon gave me peace of mind. I was not bothered to get angry. I merely smirked softly.

“Do you want them washed? Fine!”

With that, I yanked the filthy sheets off the bed and flung them right into Reed’s face. He was flustered and stunned.

Before he could recover, I grabbed him and dragged him toward the washing machine.

My sudden actions caught Eira off guard. It left her stunned for a moment.

The next second, I roughly shoved both Reed and the sheets into the washing machine.

“Dirty things need to be washed together!”

“Ah! Vedran, you lunatic! Let me go!” Reed roared as he kicked around wildly in fury.

I easily seized his wrist. Five years of housework had made me way stronger than this pampered man.

Eira finally snapped out of it. She charged over and delivered a vicious kick to my stomach. The force sent me crashing to the floor.

She immediately pulled Reed out of the washing machine and shielded him in her arms.

Reed whined in her embrace. “Eira, how dare he do this to me! My wrist hurts so much...”

Eira glared at me, her eyes blazing with fury. “Vedran, I truly underestimated you!”

I pushed myself up from the floor. There was a dull ache in my stomach. Cold sweat was pouring down my forehead.

Her face twisted into a hideous grimace. “Stop playing around! I only kicked you once.”

Her high-heeled foot slammed down hard on my wrist. My bones cracked under the crushing weight.

“Ugh!”

The excruciating pain made me groan.

Eira leaned down. Her gaze was razor-sharp.

“Apologize to Reed right now! Admit you were wrong, or I’ll cripple this hand of yours today!”

Reed stood nearby and taunted me. “Eira, make him kneel and lick my shoes, and I’ll forgive him.”

“Do you hear that? Reed’s giving you a chance.”

As Eira spoke, the pressure from her foot intensified.

I gritted my teeth through the excruciating pain. My eyes stung and turned bloodshot.

It physically hurt, but much less so from the sheer absurdity of the past five years.

‘Elena, why are you not here yet? Your fiance is being bullied!’ I screamed in my head.

Just then, a voice rang out, cold and furious.

“Who dares bully my fiance!”

A dozen blinding headlights instantly illuminated the entire courtyard.

A woman dressed in sharp, crisp attire stepped out of the leading car. Her figure was poised and agile. Behind her followed a line of stern-faced bodyguards.

The viciousness on Eira’s face froze. It transformed into utter shock.

Elena lunged forward in a single stride and sent her flying with a kick.

She pulled off her coat and draped it over me to conceal my disheveled state.

Carefully, she cradled my bruised and swollen hand.

She gazed at me with the cherished warmth of finding a long-lost treasure.

“Vedran.” Her voice trembled slightly with emotion.

“I’ve come to take you home.”