When Charlotte Parker finished emptying the bedpan and headed back to her mother-in-law's deluxe rehab suite, she spotted David Reynolds’ car parked outside.

That made her pause.

He was supposed to be on one of his regular business trips—every month, like clockwork, from the start of the month to around the middle, he’d be out lecturing. It was already the 9th, so by his schedule, he shouldn’t be anywhere near this facility.

Her husband was a professor at S University and always swamped with work. Ten years strong now, he’d been touring different colleges across the country.

Charlotte had always been the understanding kind. She knew how hard David worked, so she never complained. She just poured all her energy into looking after her paralyzed mother-in-law, Martha Wickens, and keeping their home in order. No regrets, no grudges.

Honestly, she even thought she was lucky. At her age, having a husband with a good career, and a happily married son—it was something people envied.

Everyone said she had a good life, and she used to believe it too.

Even though she’d worked her fingers to the bone, she figured marrying into the Reynolds family had been worth it.

At this hour, she was usually on her way back to the city, trying to catch the 10 AM bus, then hitting the market for groceries before heading home to whip up lunch for her foster son and his wife.

But this morning, the toilet in Martha’s suite had backed up—a not-so-unusual thing—and with her mother-in-law unable to move on her own, Charlotte had to fetch the bedpan, take it to the public restroom and clean it out. That’s what delayed her.

She had already asked the staff to fix the toilet earlier that morning, but they were getting less responsive these days. Everyone in the facility knew what a piece of work her mother-in-law was. Always giving her a hard time—blocking the toilet on purpose, breaking things for no reason, even throwing herself out of the wheelchair just to accuse Charlotte of neglect.

And all that spite? Charlotte understood where it came from. Ever since their daughter, Valentine, went missing twenty years ago, and Charlotte had failed to get pregnant again, Martha had treated her like an unwelcome guest. No son meant failing the family line. That’s just how those old-school folks thought. Even her own generation placed too much weight on having male heirs.

No son? Then you were practically useless. Some got thrown out, some even beaten—and complaining about it was out of the question.

Thinking about how her body had let her down, how she couldn’t give the Reynolds family a proper heir, made something twist in her gut.

She reached the private suite and laid her hand on the doorknob, about to go in and ask David what he was doing there.

And then, a kid’s voice floated through the door—loud and clear.

“Hi Grandma! I’m Alex Reynolds! Dad says I’m the pride of the family!”

Grandma? Dad? Charlotte frowned hard, mind blank, her hand frozen on the doorknob.

Then came the sound of Martha’s voice—same tone, but so drastically less bitter than usual, it made Charlotte’s scalp tingle.

“Good boy, Alex. Here’s a red envelope from Grandma—ten thousand just for you. Buy whatever you want.”

“Thanks, Grandma!”

Charlotte stood there in shock.

Was that really the same sharp-tongued mother-in-law who never had a kind word for her? And now she was giving out ten grand to some kid?

“Mom, you’re spoiling him with that much money,” a young woman’s voice chimed in, smooth and breezy like a songbird.

“He’s David’s pride and joy,” Martha replied, her voice going shrill again. “Of course he gets spoiled. Everything David owns will belong to Alex one day.”

Almost on impulse, Charlotte’s hands tightened around the bedpan.

She was starting to connect the dots, though a part of her still didn’t want to face the picture forming in her mind.Until David Reynolds finally spoke up. “Amelia’s had it rough these years. Mom, I saw a duplex over in Linwan. I’m thinking of getting it for Amelia and Alex. What do you think?”

“Of course, that’s a good idea,” Martha Wickens replied without missing a beat. “The place they were in was way too cramped anyway. Time for an upgrade.”

“It’s five million total. Charlotte doesn’t know I’ve stashed that much on the side, so keep it between us, alright?”

“Oh please, my legs don’t work, not my brain.”

…

Charlotte Parker couldn’t hear what they said after that.

Her ears buzzed like a train roaring through a tunnel, her whole world spinning so hard she could barely stand.

The bedpan in her hand slipped right through her trembling fingers, landing on the floor with a loud thud.

She staggered, her body suddenly cold down to the bones, like ice had seeped into every inch of her.

She wanted to walk away, but her legs felt like they were made of lead. She couldn’t move at all.

What did she just hear?

Her husband secretly bought a duplex… for the other woman?

For years, she had given everything to this family. She was a good wife, a dutiful daughter-in-law. Except for not having a child, she didn’t owe them anything.

She used to think she had lived a decent life, even a happy one—she thought she’d done pretty well.

But now? She realized what a fool she had been.

She didn’t even know when her husband started cheating.

And now that man had the nerve to bring their lovechild into the picture, using money that belonged to both of them, just to buy a home for that little family?

Charlotte’s rage exploded. Logic left the building.

She shoved open the door and let out a scream, voice raw with emotion. “David Reynolds, how could you do this to me?!”

Each word punched from her chest, like it could knock the wind out of him.

Tears blurred her sight. Her heart felt like it was being ripped apart.

“Shut the door! She’s losing it—don’t let the neighbors hear!” Martha snapped, eyes glaring wide.

David froze for a second, then strode over to slam the door shut.

Charlotte grabbed his arm, stopping him. “Now you care about saving face? If you’ve both got the guts to do something this shameless, then don’t be afraid to let people know about it!”

“Charlotte Parker, shut your damn mouth!” David growled and yanked his arm away.

He slammed the door and locked it behind him.

Then, like always after their fights, he pulled out a cigarette and lighter without saying a word, strolling off toward the balcony as if he didn’t owe her a damn thing.

The silence in the room throbbed.

Charlotte stood there, trembling with fury, staring at the mother and son by the hospital bed.

The other woman looked so young—maybe early thirties.

Dressed head to toe in expensive Chanel, carrying a crocodile Hermès bag.

David might be a university professor, and Charlotte always dressed nicely too, but there was no way she’d ever throw tens of thousands on a single bag.

And that child...

His uniform was clearly from Lawrence Academy—the city’s elite private school. Just the tuition for a year cost two hundred thousand yuan.

“Mom, Alex and I will visit you another day, we should go now…” Amelia’s voice cracked. Her flawless face was pale with panic as she grabbed the boy’s hand and glanced at the man by the window. “David, I’m heading out.”

“Let Xiao Liu drive you,” David said flatly.

That was it. He was back to being cold and quiet—as if nothing had happened.

The door creaked open, then shut.

Once the room fell into silence again, Martha threw a nasty look at Charlotte. “Since you heard it all, I might as well stop hiding it now.”"It's not a big deal for a man to have a few women outside. Don’t worry, the title of Mrs. Reynolds is still yours, that’s not changing. But, you should be more understanding, maybe just turn a blind eye, make some room for Amelia and little Alex."

Charlotte Parker couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Her mother-in-law actually said that. So confidently. So shamelessly. Advising her to be the bigger person?

Shouldn’t they be the ones apologizing to her? Begging for forgiveness?

She glanced at her husband who still hadn’t said a single word, her chest so tight it felt hard to breathe.

Thirty years of marriage, and she had always thought their bond was rock-solid.

But reality just slapped her hard in the face.

"When did it start?" she forced the words out in a low voice, trying to keep it together.

David Reynolds took a long drag from his cigarette, clearly annoyed. "Eleven years ago. You remember? Back when we argued over Valentine. If you’d just watched over the kid better, we wouldn’t have lost him. I wouldn’t have… gone out and had a kid with someone else."

He took another puff, this time some guilt creeping into his face. "I’m not gonna give Amelia a title or anything, don’t worry about that. And once Alex grows up, he'll look after you. So you got nothing to stress about."

Nothing to stress about?

Charlotte let out a laugh.

She's supposed to expect a mistress’s child to take care of her in her old age? Better chance putting her trust in Ethan, the boy she'd raised herself.

"Ethan’s gonna care for us when we’re old!" she said, each word like a hammer.

David looked totally unfazed. “He’s not my blood. I’m not leaving anything to him.”

Charlotte’s eyes widened. She’d never realized he could be this heartless.

“We raised Ethan together. He’s like our own—"

David cut her off, clearly done with the subject. “At least now you know. Maybe now you can get along with Amelia. And I won’t have to lie every month about being on a business trip.”

“What??” Charlotte’s voice shot up. Her eyes flew open in shock. “So all those business trips, for the past ten years… they were just excuses to go see her?”

“I was protecting your feelings. Didn’t want to hurt you,” David muttered like he was the considerate one here.

Charlotte laughed again, but her laugh soon turned into tears.

For ten long years, while he was out living it up with another woman, she was stuck at home, taking care of her bitter mother-in-law—cleaning up after her, dealing with her sharp tongue.

She pinched every penny, never once treating herself, though she was a professor’s wife.

She couldn’t even fall sick—rain or shine, she rushed between the nursing home and home like clockwork.

And what did she get in return?

A cheating husband, a total betrayal, and him saying, “It was just to spare your feelings.”

Just like that, she felt completely drained.

In that second, everything she’d built over the years just crumbled. The dam holding back her emotions burst wide open.

She felt like a fool. A joke.

What had she gotten from this thirty-year marriage?

Endless criticism from her mother-in-law. Nearly twenty years of a sexless, joyless partnership with her husband.

A full set of emotional baggage: wearing the "cheated-on" crown, millions in marital assets secretly drained.

Her reward for sticking around and putting everyone ahead of herself? A body worn out from years of stress, aching joints with every cold wind or rainy day.

She hated herself for realizing the truth too late. For wasting half her life.

And she hated David Reynolds, this cold-hearted man who owed her everything and gave her nothing.

But that was it.

There was nothing left to regret anymore.

"David Reynolds, let’s get a divorce." Charlotte wiped her tears from her cheek.

When she looked at him again, her gaze was steady. Calm but full of resolve.