Elara frowned slightly, catching a whiff of something strange in the air.

She didn't dwell on it, walking straight to his desk to place the documents down.

"Since we are getting a divorce, we need to discuss the progress of these jointly developed projects between the Jiang and Fu corporations. You…"

Before Elara could finish, Julian let out a low grunt, his breathing suddenly turning heavy.

He spoke hastily: "Enough! Get out!"

His behavior was far too strange, and Elara couldn't help but frown.

However, before she could figure out the reason, a soft gasp came from the office.

Immediately after, a woman with disheveled hair and a flushed face rolled out from beneath the desk, collapsing at Elara’s feet.

She scrambled up in a panic, hiding behind Julian, and whimpered timidly: "Sorry, Mr. Julian, I… my legs went numb."

Connecting this to Julian’s strange voice and heavy breathing earlier, there was nothing Elara didn't understand.

Her face turned ashen as she looked at him, and tears rolled down in an instant.

Julian’s face showed a flicker of panic, and he instinctively started to explain:

"Elara, I… this is just…"

Chloe plopped down onto her knees at Elara’s feet, waving her hands in a panic.

"Mrs. Julian, please don't misunderstand. It’s just that you haven’t been ignoring Mr. Julian for a while, and I was worried he was holding back too much, so I was just helping him get it out. He hasn’t touched me."

Chapter 5

Elara’s complexion was deathly pale.

Her hands were trembling uncontrollably, yet she still raised them, wiping the tears from her face with unwavering resolve.

"Don't bother explaining to me. We are getting a divorce soon anyway; who he chooses to vent his desires with is his own freedom."

Julian’s expression turned somber in an instant, and he looked at her with disbelief.

Elara’s voice was slightly hoarse:

"I’ve delivered the files. Remember to take a look once you’re done, Mr. Julian."

Julian clenched his fists, suddenly letting out a cold sneer, his face full of gloom and mockery:

"That's right, why bother explaining to you? Since you're about to become my ex-wife, you really have no right to care who I vent my desires with."

His gaze shifted back to Elara, cold and heartless.

"I'll look at the files. The joint projects between the Jiang and Fu corporations will continue according to the previous agreements. After we divorce, the two companies will no longer collaborate."

Elara nodded stiffly.

Julian grabbed Chloe, who was kneeling on the floor, and pulled her into his arms.

Glancing at the pale-faced Elara out of the corner of his eye, he curled his lips, his tone frigid:

"What? Are you still here? Do you want to keep watching?"

Elara snapped out of her daze, and with stiff limbs, she turned and walked out of the office that had made her feel like she was suffocating.

As she reached the doorway, she faintly heard Chloe’s voice from inside.

"Mr. Julian, Mrs. Julian seems genuinely angry. Maybe you should go and coax her? You’ve coaxed her so many times before; one more shouldn't hurt."

Julian’s impatient, mocking voice followed:

"Coax? If I coax her today, she’ll just use the divorce to manipulate me again tomorrow. Do you expect me to live like this?"

Chloe offered a weak persuasion:

"Aren't you afraid Mrs. Julian might actually go through with the divorce?"

Julian’s tone was filled with certainty:

"She loves me so much; how could she ever bear to really divorce me? She’s just trying to force me to bow my head and admit fault. I’ll bet you, before the cooling-off period ends, she’ll definitely be the one to go to the Civil Affairs Bureau to cancel the application herself."

At the door, Elara wept as she smiled.

She had indeed loved him—loved him to the point of losing herself.

Loved him so much that even as he and his lover provoked her time and again, trampling on her bottom line, she still softened her heart and forgave him over and over.

She had clung to the beautiful memories of the past, fantasizing that everything could return to how it used to be, only to realize in the end that it was nothing but a clumsy, self-deceptive performance.

Her love for him had long since vanished, consumed by these absurd wagers.

Julian, this time, I’m afraid you’re going to lose.

Weeping, Elara left the Fu Corporation and returned home.

That evening, however, Julian suddenly rushed home.

He arrived with a look of anxiety, heading straight for her with a cold, fierce expression:

"Elara, what did you do with Chloe?"

Elara frowned: "Where she went has nothing to do with me."

Julian took out his phone and played a voice message Chloe had sent him.

Chloe’s voice was filled with sobs.

"Mr. Julian, I’ve resigned. Mrs. Julian told me if I didn't leave you, she wouldn't let me off."

"I can't afford to offend someone with her status. I have no choice but to leave; please don't look for me anymore."

Julian looked down at Elara from his height, his eyes freezing:

"Pretending not to care in the office, but causing trouble for Chloe behind my back?"

"I never realized before that my dear wife was so cunning, with such a long reach that you could force my secretary to resign!"

Elara’s heart ached uncontrollably as she looked up at him:

"Julian, are you too stupid to see it, or is your heart so biased that you refuse to see this is just a self-directed drama of provocation?"

Emotion surged in Julian’s eyes, and just as he was about to speak, his phone suddenly rang.

After answering, his expression changed instantly: "I’m coming right away."

Hanging up, he looked coldly at Elara, his eyes dangerous and frigid:

"If anything happens to Chloe, I won't let you off."

Chapter 6

Elara gazed at the back of him as he strode away, collapsing onto the sofa in tears.

In a daze, she remembered the day Julian succeeded as President of the Fu Corporation.

A female employee had tried to climb the social ladder, making subtle remarks to belittle Elara.

When Julian heard it, he fired the person immediately.

Worried about the negative impact, Elara advised him not to be too dictatorial.

Back then, he had held her in his arms, laughing and saying that he was hers, and his Fu Corporation was hers too.

Any employee she didn't like, he wouldn't keep a single one.

Later, he placed a photo of them on his desk.

He said that if he missed her, he could see her at the first glance, and let everyone know that he was already taken.

She remembered that the frame holding that photo had been accidentally knocked over and shattered the first year Chloe joined the company.

Now, the object sitting in its place was a cute ornament Chloe had bought him.

Julian wasn't gone for long. When he returned, he carried a suitcase, and behind him followed Chloe.

Chloe hid behind him, clutching his shirt, her cheek swollen high, looking utterly terrified.

Julian swept a cold glance at Elara, then said to Chloe: "Go ahead."

Elara knitted her brows, looking at them with vigilance: "What are you doing?"

Julian’s eyes were ice-cold:

"You beat Chloe like this; she’s merely returning the favor."

Chloe whimpered timidly: "Mrs. Julian, you sent people to beat me up and threatened that if I didn't leave, you’d make me suffer."

"I promised Mr. Julian that as long as I could hit back, I would stay, and I wouldn't pursue the matter of you targeting me."

Elara looked at Julian with disbelief: "I didn't! I never even touched her!"

Julian raised his hand and waved.

Two bodyguards immediately stepped forward, grabbing Elara on both sides to restrain her.

Elara was so angry her eyes turned red, and she struggled desperately: "Julian, have you gone mad? I told you I didn't do it, can't you understand? Tell them to let me go!"

Julian simply pulled Chloe in front of her.

He looked at Elara, his gaze frigid.

"Since you were the one who hit someone first, you should be prepared to be hit back."

As he spoke, he lowered his gaze to Chloe.

"I said I would protect you. Don't be afraid. Hit her!"

Chloe took a step back, pressing against his chest, her eyes looking even more timid:

"I don't dare to..."

Elara’s whole body trembled: "Julian… how could you…"

Julian gave an impatient "tsk," and without hesitation, he grabbed Chloe’s hand and slapped it violently across Elara’s face.

Smack!

Elara’s face was turned to the side by the blow.

Chloe’s eyes lit up instantly, her lips curling into a smile as she looked at Julian.

Julian raised an eyebrow: "Coward, not afraid anymore?"

Chloe immediately laughed coquettishly: "With Mr. Julian here, I’m not afraid!"

Immediately after, she raised her hand and struck Elara’s face again.