At the celebration banquet for my company’s IPO, one of my competitors, driven by jealousy, actually wanted me dead.

When the assassin charged at me with a knife, my wife stepped in front of me without hesitation.

She had always been terrified of pain, yet she took that fatal blow for me.

Blood pooled across the floor, and she was rushed straight to the ICU.

But just as she emerged from critical condition and regained consciousness, I threw a divorce agreement onto her lap.

“Sophia, we’re done.”

“Let’s get a divorce.”

Everyone froze in shock.

Her male best friend jumped out immediately, furiously cursing me.

“Ethan Parker, has your conscience been eaten by dogs?”

“Sophia’s nerves are ten times more sensitive than other people’s—she can cry from a mosquito bite—yet she didn’t even blink when taking that knife for you!”

“She risked her life for you, and now you’re throwing her away? Are you even human?!”

“Shut up.”

My voice cut through the room, cold and hard, as I locked eyes on him.

“You really think I don’t know what’s been going on between you and Sophia?”

A flash of panic crossed Lucas Bennett’s eyes.

Sophia hurriedly grabbed my hand, tears brimming as she shook her head.

“Honey, don’t…”

“You said on our wedding day you’d never leave me.”

“I get it—you were just trying to ease the tense mood in the hospital room just now, right? You were joking, weren’t you?”

The onlookers sighed inwardly.

What a devoted woman.

With a wife like this, what more could a man possibly want?

“Ethan, you’ve gone too far!”

My mother, Martha Parker, scolded sternly. “Who jokes about divorce? Look what you’ve done—you’ve terrified her!”

“Hurry and apologize to her!”

Just when everyone thought I would soften, kiss Sophia’s forehead, and say, Sorry, honey,

I yanked my hand away from hers and wiped the spot she had touched as if it were dirty.

“Ah!”

Sophia cried out in pain as her wound was pulled, the gauze on her chest instantly blooming red with blood.

The sight of that vivid crimson stunned everyone again.

They now realized—this was no joke. I was dead serious.

“What is wrong with you?!”

My mother instinctively snapped, but quickly frowned and glanced suspiciously at Lucas.

She knew her son—he was not a heartless man.

For him to explode like this out of nowhere, there had to be more to it.

“Ethan, explain yourself.”

“What did you mean just now about… ‘what’s going on’?”

“Nothing.”

I didn’t want to say another word.

I just told Sophia to sign the divorce agreement.

Once she could get out of bed, we’d go to the City Hall Marriage Bureau.

I was about to leave when my father, Richard Parker, suddenly grabbed me.

“You little punk!”

“Do you have a death wish? You’re not leaving until you explain yourself!”

“Dad, Mom, don’t blame Ethan,”

“It’s me—it’s all my fault…”

All eyes turned to Sophia, who was struggling to sit up, tears streaming down her face.

The same thought flashed through everyone’s mind.

Could it be…

Sophia and Lucas were having an affair, and I had caught them?

After all, a married woman cheating with her male best friend wasn’t exactly unheard of.

People then looked over at Lucas, who had suddenly gone quiet and withdrawn.

His face was dark, and sweat beaded across his forehead.

Honestly…

He did look a bit like a guilty lover.

“Sophia, you’re not seriously saying you and Lucas…”

Before my mother, Martha Parker, could finish her sentence, Sophia nodded calmly, as if admitting it without hesitation.

“That’s right.”

“Before I dated Ethan, I did have a brief relationship with Lucas.”

“What?”

“That’s it?” My mother looked startled.

Sophia gave a sorrowful smile. “Yes, that’s it.”

“But Lucas and I only dated for three days before realizing we weren’t right for each other. We never went beyond holding hands.”

“So when we broke up, there was no awkwardness. We remained close friends.”

“I told Ethan about all of this. I thought he didn’t care, but I was wrong…”

“It turns out that this was like a thorn, buried deep in his heart all along.”

The more she spoke, the more emotional she became.

Finally, she clutched the blood-stained gauze over her chest and cried out with a trembling voice:

“Honey, after I risked my life to take that knife for you, was that still not enough to prove my devotion?”

“Not enough to remove that thorn from your heart?”

“Do you think you’re being fair to me?!”

I stared at her in surprise.

There was no guilt, no shame in my heart—only a cold smile.

Her performance… was quite something.

“Phew…”

Lucas let out a discreet sigh of relief, his eyes darting before he suddenly slapped himself hard across the face.

“Sophia, I’m sorry.”

“I truly didn’t realize my presence could cause such a rift between you two.”

“I’ve decided—starting now, you and I will cut off all contact and never see each other again.”

“Ethan Parker, that should be enough for you, right?”

He turned to leave, but had barely taken a step when my father, Richard Parker, stopped him.

“Uncle?”

Lucas looked at my father in confusion, but my father’s face was ice-cold, his eyes wide with fury, the veins at his temples bulging.

That was always the prelude to his outbursts.

Sure enough, the next second he roared:

“You little bastard—kneel!”

“Apologize to Sophia and to Lucas!”

My fists clenched so tightly my knuckles went white.

Seeing this, a flicker of satisfaction crossed Lucas’s face, though he quickly put on a humble expression, waving his hands at my father.

“Uncle, I don’t mind. As long as he sincerely apologizes to Sophia and the two of them can live well together, that’s enough.”

The onlookers, hearing this, nodded in admiration while quietly feeling indignant on his behalf.

“What a good guy—clearly wronged, yet still so magnanimous.”

“Exactly. Even after such a misunderstanding, he’s showing more grace than Mr. Parker could ever hope to match.”

“Remind me again, why did our boss’s wife leave Mr. Bennett for Mr. Parker in the first place?”

“If I were her, I’d have stayed with Mr. Bennett—such a fine man.”

“Shh! We’re supposed to put out the fire here, not fan the flames!”

Listening to my employees gossiping, my father’s face darkened even further.

He patted Lucas on the shoulder and said, “Lucas, I can tell you and Sophia are completely innocent.”

“What Ethan did today damaged both your reputations. He owes you both an apology!”

Then he shot me a fierce glare.

“What are you still standing there for?”

“Sophia is a girl who’s terrified of pain, yet she risked her life to shield you from that knife.”

“And you’re still holding a petty grudge over something so trivial? For the record, your mother wasn’t my first love either!”

“You’ve disgraced me enough—apologize to her right now!”

I took a deep breath and looked my father, Richard Parker, straight in the eye.

“Dad, I’m sorry.”

“But this is one apology I will never give.”

“And this marriage—I’m ending it.”

Without another word, I turned and walked away.

“You ungrateful brat!”

“If you dare walk out today, don’t ever think about setting foot in the Parker family home again!”

“The Parker family has no place for a petty, cold-hearted man like you!”

I didn’t stop.

His furious shouts chased me down the hallway, stabbing into my chest like knives, cutting into me over and over.

Bitter?

The one truly wronged here wasn’t Sophia Reed or Lucas Bennett—it was me.

Yet I could only endure the accusations of relatives, friends, and employees in silence, without speaking a word in my own defense.

After I left, my father exchanged a glance with my mother.

Martha Parker understood instantly and turned to comfort Sophia in a gentle tone.

“Sophia, Ethan’s just being foolish in the moment—don’t hold it against him.”

“Don’t worry. Even if he doesn’t recognize you as his wife, we do.”

“We’ll make sure you get justice.”

Sophia forced a fragile smile and shook her head sadly.

“Dad, Mom… thank you.”

“But it’s not necessary.”

“I believe real love is about letting go.”

“If Ethan has truly made up his mind, then…”

“I’ll let him go, and make way for the woman he loves.”

With that, she slowly picked up the divorce agreement.

“No!”

“Sophia, give Ethan another chance—your mother-in-law believes he’ll come around.”

Martha was still trying to persuade her, but Richard stopped her with a sigh.

“Forget it.”

“That fool doesn’t deserve Sophia. Better to cut the cord now than live in pain later.”

“It’s just our bad luck in the Parker family that we couldn’t keep such a good daughter-in-law.”

The others in the room nodded in sympathy, sighing in regret.

Sophia flipped to the last page of the divorce agreement—and froze.

As she hesitated, the others leaned in to see.

Five words stared back at them: The woman leaves with nothing.

Silence.

The hospital room went deathly still, the kind of stillness that feels like the moment before a storm.

A woman who risked her life to take a knife for love—not only was she met with betrayal and divorce, but she was to leave with absolutely nothing?

Was there any justice left in the world?

It was an outrage beyond belief.

Just as my parents and the others were about to explode, Sophia’s lips curled into another faint smile.

She spoke in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, as if to herself:

“I’ve loved him for three years, and this is his final answer to me?”

“Forget it…”

“When a person is gone, what’s the point of money?”

“I… accept.”

Wiping away her last tear, she moved to sign.

“You will not sign that!”

My father barked, snatching the pen from her and tossing it into the trash.

My mother held Sophia’s head against her shoulder, sobbing so hard her voice shook.

“Child, are you crazy?!”

“You’re not the one at fault—why should you walk away with nothing?”

Sophia’s smile was bitter, tinged with sorrow.

She said lightly, “As long as it makes him happy, that’s enough.”

Her words broke the hearts of everyone in the room.

“Ethan’s behavior is inhuman!”

“If I had a wife whose heart was full of me, I’d cherish her with my life, not throw her away like garbage!”