Chapter 6

Just as I reached downstairs, a girl named Emily from Leo’s company called me.

She was cheerful and carefree, quite likable.

She asked if I was busy, and upon learning I wasn’t, she immediately started venting, asking if I was going to divorce Leo.

I didn’t hide it.

She asked if it was because of Jane.

I didn’t know why she said that, perhaps Leo had made it public.

Seeing my silence, Emily sighed heavily.

“Ms. Sophia, I knew it was because of that woman! No wonder you haven’t been bringing us afternoon tea lately!

“I miss you!”

When I was with Leo, I would bring afternoon tea almost every week to thank them.

Colleagues often joked about working there forever just to enjoy Mrs. Leo’s afternoon tea.

“It’s okay, I’m planning to open a coffee shop. You can come over, and I’ll treat you.”

Emily exclaimed and quickly asked for the address.

I told her I’d send it later.

She agreed and continued to vent.

“You don’t know about Jane. Since you stopped coming, she went from being the receptionist to the office manager, and her attitude towards everyone has changed.

“She used to smile at everyone, but now she finds fault at every turn, her smugness is obvious.

“She even bought similar dresses and high heels like yours, anyone can see it. What is Leo thinking?”

She ended by saying that if it weren’t for her mortgage, she’d quit to avoid dealing with Jane.

I reached my doorstep, and Emily was still talking. I comforted her for a while before she reluctantly hung up.

At this point, I seemed to have lost interest in knowing anything about Jane.

Unlike when Leo confessed to the affair, when I was desperate to understand what made her so captivating.

I opened the door, surprised to see Leo’s shoes; he was playing games with our son.

Upon seeing me, our son excitedly shouted, “Mom, come join us! Let’s beat Dad together!”

In the past, Leo would lift our son up, making him laugh, and then come after me.

The house was filled with laughter.

Now, Leo coughed and ruffled our son’s hair, “Mom’s been out all day and is tired. Next time, okay?”

“Alright. Dad, when will you stop traveling?”

Leo thought for a moment, softly saying “soon,” and urged our son to go to bed.

After a long day at the coffee shop, I didn’t have the energy to chat with him, reminding him to lock the door when he left.

He said he promised our son he’d sleep with him tonight.

I said no more.

I closed the door to my room.

From the living room, I heard Leo’s phone ring; he answered and repeated something several times.

Finally, his voice lowered, slightly impatient.

“I told you, I’m home just to be with my son. What are you afraid of? We’ve already agreed to divorce!

“How many times do I have to say it? We’re not sharing a room!”

I heard Leo hang up.

He came over and knocked on my door.

“Sophia, something came up at the company, I have to go back. I’ll find time to be with our son tomorrow.”

I didn’t open the door, just said okay.

My voice was neither loud nor soft, just enough for Leo to hear outside.

Before he left, I received a notification of a 50,000 transfer to our son’s bank card.

The note said to treat our son to something nice tomorrow.

I didn’t reply, just opened my computer to review the coffee shop’s plans.

A message popped up from a stranger on WeChat.

No words, just a smiley face.

Her profile picture was a bouquet of flowers, and her background was simple, with no posts.

I couldn’t even remember when I added this person.

Looking at the chat history, it dated back two years.

As I was recalling, she sent a message.

[Feeling proud, aren’t you?]

Almost instantly.

I felt this person was Jane.

But Jane only joined Leo’s company half a year ago?

How did she have my WeChat from two years ago?

Could it be that this account had been secretly watching my life for nearly two years?

I gasped.

Sent a question mark.

She typed quickly.

[No matter what you do to keep him, I can make him come over immediately.]

It was indeed her, Jane.

Does this mean Leo knew Jane two years ago?

Or even longer?

Jane sent a photo, and when I opened it, I saw Leo asleep in a hotel, shirtless, with a woman’s hand on his chest.

The date in red at the bottom right corner read “2023.2.16.”

I stared at the photo, a discomfort in my chest, nausea overwhelming me.

I vomited violently into the trash can on the floor.

February 16, 2023.

That was the day my father had his first surgery after feeling unwell.

Leo was busy the entire February.

He was constantly traveling, but he postponed several meetings to be with me.

He comforted me gently throughout the video calls.

Told me to relax.

When I couldn’t sleep from anxiety, Leo stayed on video with me all night.

He managed to come over early on February 16th.

To stay with me outside the operating room.

Yet that day, amidst his busy schedule, he found time to sleep with Jane.

How did he manage to face me so calmly afterward?

Seeing no reply from me.

Jane grew more smug.

She sent several photos, all dated.

There was our wedding anniversary.

Our son’s birthday.

Every time, he spent time with Jane first, then rushed back to be with us.

A massive wave of nausea spread from my chest, consuming my pain.

Indeed.

I thought Leo had grown tired of us over the past six months.

Disgusted by our calm and warm life.

Or perhaps he found true love in middle age.

Turns out, it had been rotten all along.

I washed my face in the bathroom.

Returned to the computer, saving each piece of evidence.

I knew Jane dared to send them because the 20 million from the divorce agreement hadn’t been fully paid.

Leo had been sending 8 million over the past half month, with 12 million still pending.

The house and car were already in my name, without loans, and the agreement was clear; he agreed, so there was no dispute.

If I made a fuss now, affecting Leo’s company, he’d be furious, leading to losses for me.

Our son would completely lose his father.

When Leo confessed to the affair and divorce, he might have expected me to cry and make a scene.

But my nature loves dignity, not to the point of going to the company to cause a scene.

Jane didn’t expect me to be so straightforward.

I didn’t make a fuss, didn’t even confront Leo, which was beyond her expectations.

She knew whoever made a fuss first would lose.

But one thing was strange.

Jane managed to stay by Leo’s side for so long, hiding so well, even pretending to be innocent for half a year in the company.

Why suddenly couldn’t she wait?

In just half a month, Leo and I would be completely separated.

She couldn’t stand Leo going home to be with his son.

I checked the time, it wasn’t too late.

Called Emily.

She was having dinner with a few colleagues, gossiping about Leo and Jane.

They exchanged information.

Learned a few new things.

Leo got drunk at a party half a month ago, and a beautiful female executive from the partner company personally drove him home.

Later, she privately invited Leo a few times.

Plus, I hadn’t been to the company to bring afternoon tea this week, everyone guessed Leo and I had a fight.

That spread quickly, and some girls with ulterior motives started throwing themselves at Leo.

After that, Jane couldn’t sit still.

“Ms. Sophia, you’re so nice, I really don’t want to hide anything from you. Don’t be sad, although Leo is handsome, he’s a jerk.

“You’ll definitely meet a better man! No, wait, men are nothing, Ms. Sophia, you’ll definitely reach the peak of your career, your coffee shop will be a hit, and then you can think about men, haha.”

Emily’s words lifted my spirits a bit.

“Thank you, I’ll do my best.”

Hung up the phone, and saw it was past midnight, the calendar reminder was particularly clear.

14 days until the divorce countdown.