The wedding date was approaching, and a notice was posted in the company group. All employees would receive a half-year bonus of 14 thousand dollars and a seven-day trip to Bali.

[Thank you, Miss Wallace, you’re so generous!]

[Miss Wallace chose Bali—does that mean he’s going to hold the wedding there with Mr. Benneth?]

[Definitely, I heard they were childhood sweethearts and already engaged.]

[Blue seas, blue skies, and sandy beaches—it’ll definitely be romantic!]

Just as everyone was cheering with excitement, Megan’s assistant, Brian Carter, sent a message.

[Miss Wallace, I’ve only been working here for less than three months, so I guess the half-year bonus doesn’t apply to me, right?]

Megan, who almost never spoke in the group, replied for once.

[As long as you’ve done work, there will be a reward.]

At the time, I was just surprised and didn’t think much of it.

The next day, the HR manager secretly told me that Mrs. Wallace had someone else in mind for the director position.

I was really upset. Clearly, that position had been reserved for me, so why did she change her choice?

I went to ask the reason, but unexpectedly overheard her talking with her best friend.

"Megan, you’re really generous. You knew Brian’s mother urgently needed 14 thousand dollars for surgery and you were afraid he’d be too embarrassed to accept it, so you came up with this way to help him and on the fifteenth of last month, when he broke his leg, you stayed in the hospital with him for half a month. At the time, Raymond still thinks you were abroad."

It felt like I had fallen into an ice hole, my whole body turning cold.

So last month, when she claimed to be abroad on business and missed my mother’s funeral, it was only to take care of her male assistant.

Megan gave a careless smile. "Enough, Raymond loves to get jealous the most. If he hears this, he’ll start sulking with me again."

I pressed my lips together and took out my phone to make a call. "Dad, I’ve decided. Cancel the engagement with the Wallace Family."

Since Megan liked helping others, then I would just let her have her way.

——

My father’s voice suddenly rose sharply on the other end of the line. "What did you say? Son, ever since you were little, that girl was the only one in your eyes. For her, you didn’t even care about the family business and went to work as a salesman at Wallace Group. Now that the wedding is just around the corner, you suddenly say you want to call off the engagement? What on earth is going on?"

My knuckles turned slightly white as I gripped the phone, but my tone remained calm. "Dad, do you remember the goldfish I had when I was little? I changed its water every day, fed it, yet it always wanted to jump out of the tank and then one day, it really did jump out."

I paused for a moment. "When I found it, it had already dried up and died…"

There was a long silence on the other end of the line. When my dad spoke again, his voice was a little hoarse. "You… have really decided?"

"Mm, I’ve decided."

After hanging up the phone, I turned on my computer and sent my resignation letter to the HR email.

The next day, as soon as I arrived at the company, Taylor at the front desk informed me to attend a meeting.

When I pushed open the conference room door, more than twenty pairs of eyes turned to look at me in unison.

Megan sat at the head of the table, dressed in a crisp white suit. Her long hair was pinned up, revealing her slender neck.

She looked up at me, her eyes flickering for a moment before quickly returning to calm. "Everyone’s here, let’s begin."

Her voice was as cool and detached as ever.

I walked to my seat and sat down—directly across from Brian.

Today, he looked especially sharp, his hair neatly combed without a strand out of place. The cuffs of his light blue shirt were fastened with a pair of dark gold cufflinks. They were an antique I had specially brought back from France the year before last for Megan’s birthday.

"There’s only one item on the agenda for today’s meeting," Megan said, sweeping her gaze around the room. "The appointment of the Marketing Director."

My fingers tapped unconsciously on the table. This position should have been mine.

From the moment I gave up the family business five years ago and joined Wallace Group, I had worked my way up step by step from the bottom to deputy director—everyone believed it was a done deal.

"After careful consideration, I’ve decided to appoint Brian as the new Marketing Director, effective next month."

After a few seconds of dead silence, the conference room erupted.

Mr. Cameron, the Finance Director, was the first to slap the table and stand up. "Miss Wallace, this isn’t in line with the rules! Mr. Benneth has been with the company for less than three months—he hasn’t even passed his probation!"

Windy from the Operations Department also stood up to agree. "That’s right, in terms of seniority and ability, Mr. Benneth should be the one to take over!"

I sat quietly, my gaze fixed on Megan’s face.

Her expression didn’t waver in the slightest; she merely lifted her hand slightly to signal for everyone to be quiet. "Although Brian has only been here a short time, the new proposal he put forward has already been approved by the board of directors."

Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an unquestionable firmness. "I believe he can lead the Marketing Department to new heights. So, it’s settled."

Brian kept his head lowered, wearing a modest expression. But the faint trace of a smile at the corner of his mouth still gave him away. When his eyes met mine, a glint of smugness flickered in them.

"If there’s nothing else, the meeting is adjourned." Megan closed the folder.

I stood up, the chair scraping against the floor with a harsh sound.

All eyes turned toward me.

Megan frowned slightly. "Raymond, do you have something to say?"

"No."

My expression remained calm as I turned and headed for the door.

"Mr. Benneth!" Brian suddenly stood up and quickly caught up with me. "Please wait a moment!"

He reached out to stop me. "I come from the countryside, with limited exposure and insufficient experience. For the position of director, I truly feel unworthy. So I think it would still be more suitable for you to take the role…"

His voice grew softer and softer, perfectly portraying the nervous humility of a newcomer facing a senior. But when he pretended to casually lift his hand to adjust his tie, I clearly saw the watch on his wrist.

It was the Patek Philippe that Megan had given me for my twentieth birthday. I had never worn it, unwilling to risk scratching it and had always kept it locked away in the safe.

The moment I recognized it, my blood seemed to freeze.

"Brian, don’t be like this." Megan walked over and gently patted Brian’s shoulder. "This is the company’s decision—you don’t need to give up the position."

She turned to me, a trace of reproach in her eyes. "Raymond, you’re not going to be this petty, are you?"

That sentence was like a knife plunging straight into my heart.

For years, I had given up my family business and started from the bottom. When she worked overtime, I brought her meals; when she was sick, I stayed by her side through the night.

I worked myself to the bone, driving Wallace Group’s business volume to climb year after year, its market value multiplying several times over and now, in front of all the company’s senior executives, she was calling me petty?

I nearly bit my lip hard enough to draw blood and said coldly, "Miss Wallace, I resign."

For the first time, a flicker of panic appeared on Megan’s face. "Raymond, what did you say?"

"I said, I’m done. Move!" I shoved Brian out of my way.

He staggered a little, immediately putting on a wounded expression.

"Mr. Benneth, please don’t be upset. This is all my fault, I apologize to you…" he spoke pitifully, yet his eyes kept flicking toward Megan.

Megan quickly caught Brian, then turned to glare at me. "Raymond! You’ve gone too far! Brian meant well—how could you push him?"

I let out a cold snort and turned to leave.

Behind me came the sharp, rapid clicks of high heels. Megan hurried to catch up and grabbed my arm.

"Raymond, what kind of attitude is this?" Her voice was as cold as ice. "The company meeting isn’t over yet, and you haven’t apologized to Brian—how can you just walk away like this?"

I stopped in my tracks, my gaze calm as I looked at her.

Today, she was still dazzlingly beautiful. Her red lips burned like flames, her brows and eyes as if painted. But in those eyes that once drowned me, there was now only lofty arrogance and disdain.

"Miss Wallace, I’ve already resigned," I replied calmly. "The meeting has nothing to do with me. As for Brian, I will never apologize to him."

Her brows furrowed slightly. But soon, she regained that air of being in complete control.

"I haven’t approved your resignation letter, so you’re still an employee of Wallace Group." Her tone softened a little. "Let’s set the apology aside for now—go back and finish the meeting."

I tugged at the corner of my mouth in a smile. "Miss Wallace, since when have you started caring about procedure? Brian hasn’t even completed his probation, yet he was still promoted to director, wasn’t he?"

Her gaze froze for a moment. "The company’s decisions don’t seem to be yours to question, do they?"

"Yes, you’re right—it’s not my place," I nodded. "That’s why I’m choosing to walk away. Out of sight, out of mind."

With that, I stepped around her and kept walking.

She clearly hadn’t expected me to be so decisive. She froze for a moment, then came after me again, heels clicking sharply.

"Raymond! What are you making a fuss about? Just because I didn’t make you a director?"

I looked at her, suddenly finding it laughable. She still thought I was sulking just over the position.

"Megan." I spoke each word clearly. "We’ve known each other for so many years—when have you ever seen me lose my temper over work?"

She froze for a moment, as if my words had caught her off guard. But soon, she lifted her chin again. "Then what are you angry about?"

I looked straight into her eyes. "You know better than anyone."

Her gaze flickered slightly. "I… I don’t understand what you’re talking about."

I got straight to the point and asked her what was going on with the cufflinks and the watch.

Megan was momentarily stunned, then explained openly. "The cufflinks were a reward I gave Brian for his hard work. As for the watch—since you don’t wear it anyway, what’s the harm in giving it to him?"

I almost laughed from sheer anger. So the things I had treasured so dearly had never meant anything to her.

Megan casually brushed a loose strand of hair from her ear, the corners of her red lips curling up. "Raymond, when did you become so petty? It’s just two little items. If you want, I can always buy you more."

She turned her head toward the conference room, her tone light and airy. "Brian has been staying up late every day for the project lately—I have to show some appreciation."

"Appreciation?"

It felt like a block of ice had been shoved into my chest.

Ever since Brian joined the company, the arguments between us had only grown more frequent. Every single time, it had been because of Brian—and every single time, I had been the one to give in.

But this time, I wouldn’t.

"Megan, that year on your birthday, I searched every antique shop in Paris before I finally found that pair of 19th-century dark-gold cufflinks. You said you loved the story behind them, that they were the most thoughtful gift you’d ever received."