After I succeed in helping my wife, Claire Gibson, establish her company, I decide to become a full-time stay-at-home dad without a worry in the world.

Since my daughter, Nancy Davidson's 10th birthday is coming soon, I want to make the event fancy. So, I decide to place an order on Hill Hotel's birthday banquet services, where one full table of food costs 18 thousand dollars.

When I'm swiping my card, the hotel employee shoots me a look.

"Mr. Davidson, your card can barely foot for a 500-dollar bill."

Embarrassed, I go home and question Claire about the family's finances. She looks at me apologetically instead.

"My company has been participating in a bidding process lately. The newly-appointed governmental senior official is a greedy one, you see. I've spent quite a lot of money in bribing him just to get things done.

"Once my cash flow is back, I'll definitely throw Nancy a fancy birthday banquet!"

In a considerate manner, I tell Claire that I completely understand her situation. But soon, I start calculating the assets I still have.

After all, my dad is the newly-appointed official. There aren't any bidding processes going on in the government at all.

I'd like to see where on earth Claire has spent all of her money.

The debit card was meant for the family's shared expenses.

Last month, there was still over a million dollars left on it. The spending records had clearly been tampered with, so I went to the bank myself to pull the statements.

The largest charge was billed at Hill Hotel, the same place I had been earlier, at 88 thousand dollars. The itemized bill said it was a birthday party package.

My daughter, Nancy Davidson, said excitedly, "Mom must be planning a surprise for us, right? Dad, let's go and give Mom a surprise too!"

Looking into her innocent eyes, I couldn't bring myself to think the worst of her mother and my wife, Claire Gibson.

By the time we arrived at the party hall, I saw Claire immediately. She stood at the entrance in a red dress, chatting and laughing with the guests.

A man in a custom suit was holding her arm affectionately, looking like they were the perfect couple. He was Logan Stone, a director at Claire's company and one of the original senior members.

"Your son really takes after Mr. Stone. He's so young, but he's already such a handsome little gentleman."

"Who in our company doesn't envy their relationship? Their child's already seven, yet they're still inseparable."

As I listened to the guests' compliments, I noticed a little boy standing between them. He looked strikingly like Claire.

"Mom, you got the name wrong!" Nancy suddenly piped up. "It's Nancy, not Caleb!"

She pulled free from my grasp and ran toward Claire. That was when I saw the sign next to them. In bold letters, it read, "Happy 7th Birthday to Our Beloved Caleb!"

Before I could process it, I heard a thud. Logan had shoved Nancy to the ground. "Where on earth did this wild kid come from? Have some basic manners."

I rushed forward to lift Nancy up. When I saw the blood seeping from her knee, fury instantly drowned out all reason.

"Wow, Claire. You used our family's money to keep a man on the side and raise an illegitimate child—and now you're allowing him to hurt Nancy too?"

My voice shook with rage as I held the crying Nancy.

Logan muttered under his breath, "What family money? I earned every penny with Ms. Gibson through hard work. Some people get used to leeching off others and actually think they're in charge."

The guests murmured among themselves, their eyes flicking between us.

"Don't tell me this is the other man. And he brought his illegitimate daughter along to crash the party!"

"Don't you know? Homewreckers have no shame nowadays. They waltz right in front of the wife or husband and think they're in the right."

"I know, right? And he even has a daughter. She might follow his father's example one day."

Their curious, scornful, mocking gazes fell on me and Nancy like bullets.

In a fit of rage, I shouted, "What nonsense are you guys talking about? Logan is the homewrecker here! That boy is the illegitimate child, not my Nancy!"

A few snickers rippled through the crowd.

A pot-bellied man swirled his drink and scoffed. "Everyone knows Mr. Stone and Ms. Gibson have been together for years. He's her right-hand man—it's common knowledge!"

Another woman chimed in. "They have a solid relationship. If you ask me, I bet this young man just saw her wealth and came here looking for a payout."

I turned to Claire and demanded coldly, "Claire, tell them who I am."

At last, Claire spoke.

With an apologetic smile, she stepped toward the guests. "Please excuse the scene. This is our male housekeeper. He's a bit into over-the-top power fantasy novels and tends to blur reality with fiction."

She turned to me, her gaze sharp with warning. "Take your daughter home, Joe. Don't make a spectacle of yourself here."

It felt like a lightning strike. I couldn't believe that the woman I had shared a bed with for 12 years would pin such a ridiculous identity on me, right in front of everyone.

Seeing that Claire was backing him up, Logan felt a surge of confidence and acted bolder.

"I get it, Joe. Being a single dad isn't easy. Still, you can't pull a stunt like this. How about this—you head back now, and I'll have the butler process an extra three months of salary for you."

Laughter broke out among the guests.

"So, he's just a delusional housekeeper. That's ridiculous! People will really do anything for money these days, huh?"

"That girl looks pitiful, though, with the kind of father she has."

"Kids raised like that always know how to play the victim. Don't be fooled. They're not as innocent as they look."

Logan smiled with satisfaction. He crouched down beside the boy, Caleb Stone, and said, "See this, Caleb? You have to study hard, or you'll end up embarrassing yourself like that man there."

Caleb lifted his chin, his eyes carrying a sharpness far beyond his years. "Hey, bastard. Why are you arguing with my dad?"

He reached out and shoved me. Caught off guard, I stumbled back a couple of steps, nearly losing my footing along with Nancy.

Caleb carried himself like a pampered young heir, full of misplaced confidence.

"My dad said I'll get to inherit Gibson Group one day. You scrawny, bastard girl—you think you can take away my dad just like that? One day, you'll end up just like your dad, working for others your whole life!"

The guests' laughter grew even harsher, with some even clapping in approval.

"Mr. Stone Junior here has ambition! He's going places for sure!"

Just then, a few hotel staff in uniforms passed by carrying trays. One of them was the manager who had received me.

The moment he saw me, he deliberately raised his voice and said to his colleague, "Well, if it isn't the gentleman who booked a birthday party package, only to find he didn't even have 500 dollars on his card.

"I said it back then—some people like to put on a show they can't afford. In the end, they can only leave in embarrassment."

A mocking laugh slipped from Logan's lips. "Couldn't even come up with 500 dollars? No wonder he's making a scene here."

The pot-bellied man from earlier staggered over, his gaze lingering in a way that made my skin crawl. His tone turned suggestive.

"You know, for someone working as a housekeeper, you're actually quite handsome. Your girl looks like a bright one too. Things don't seem to be working out for you here. Why not come with me instead?

"I'll give you three thousand dollars a month and cover the living expenses for both you and your daughter. What do you say?"

The pot-bellied man added, "I mean, at least you won't have to worry about not having 500 dollars in your pockets anymore. You know, a good wash and he’s still good."

The moment those words landed, the crowd burst into even louder laughter.

Someone egged him on, "Wow, Mr. Zimmerman, you're being generous! But aren't you kinda overpaying? Is three thousand really the going rate these days?"

Holding Claire in his arms, Logan joined in with the others, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

I raised my voice, unable to hold back any longer. "Claire, are you just going to let them humiliate Nancy and me like that?"

Claire looked at me without a trace of emotion, as if I were nothing more than a stranger. Only after the laughter began to die down did she finally speak, albeit rather impatiently.

"Stop embarrassing yourself, Joe. Today is my son's birthday. Take your daughter elsewhere, or I'll have security escort you out."

Nancy trembled even harder in my arms. She clutched my clothes tightly as she buried her face against my chest, too afraid to look at the hostile faces around us.

"Dad, is what they're saying true?"

Hearing the fear and disbelief in her voice, I felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest. After 12 years of marriage, this was what things had come to—a public humiliation in front of a room full of people.

"No, Nancy, it's not true at all."

I covered Nancy's ears, a bitter weight settling in my chest. How was I supposed to explain any of this to her?

Back when Claire had just started her business, we were squeezed into an office space no bigger than 100 square feet.

The company couldn't afford to hire staff, so I handled whatever needed to be done, from administration tasks to bookkeeping and order follow-ups.

To help her bring in clients, I swallowed my pride and reached out to every connection I had, calling in favors from friends and relatives alike.

I still remembered the day Claire landed her first major client. She was so excited that she kissed me, then used the company's first earnings to buy me a suit.

Watching how happy she was, I never told her that the client had actually been an old friend of my uncle's.

Later, after Nancy was born, the company gradually found its footing. I couldn't bear to see Claire juggling both work and the baby, so I suggested staying home to take care of our daughter.

Back then, she had made a promise. "I'm a career woman, after all. I'll take care of you and Nancy from now on."

Yet, now…

I lowered my head and looked at the T-shirt I had been wearing for three years. Claire, meanwhile, was dressed head-to-toe in designer brands. Logan stood beside her in a tailored suit.

Together, they basked in the crowd's admiration, looking perfectly matched. I, on the other hand, had been dismissed as nothing more than a housekeeper, which nobody even questioned.

"Joe, I know life hasn't been easy for you, but a child this age already understands things," Logan said. "Even if you don't care about yourself, you shouldn't put her in such an awkward position."

As he spoke, he pulled out a small stack of cash from his designer wallet and held it out to me with an air of superiority.

"I don't have that much cash on me. Look, I don't know what difficulties you're dealing with, but take this two grand for now. Get yourself a ticket back to your hometown… and maybe see a specialist while you're at it."

As he leaned in, he lowered his voice so only I could hear. "Look what's happening now, Joseph. So what if you met Claire before I did? The one who isn't loved is always the outsider."

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Logan suddenly let out a soft exclamation, his fingers loosening. The cash struck my face and scattered across the floor.

He smiled without a trace of apology, his gaze dismissive. "Sorry. It slipped."

The pot-bellied man, Mr. Zimmerman, chimed in again. "Mr. Stone is generous. That's real class right there."