In the consultation room of Sullivan & Sutton Law Firm.
Emma Sullivan sat with one leg over the other, her black tights emphasizing her long legs. Chin propped on one hand, her eyes widened with each word from the man sitting across from her. Her long lashes fluttered, surprise written all over her face.
A graduate of Jiangcheng University’s law school, Emma had handled hundreds of cases in just four years. She’d seen bizarre stuff, but this one? This was like something straight out of a tabloid.
“Mr. Lawrence, you’re telling me the two of you initially agreed on a fake divorce, and then your ex-wife…” She paused slightly, then clarified, “...decided to make it real, didn’t she?”
Ethan Lawrence nodded wearily. “Yeah.”
He looked terrible—sickly pale, bloodshot eyes like he hadn’t slept in days. There was exhaustion stitched into every line on his face.
“You’re hoping to re-divide the assets, is that right?” Emma asked.
“Yes.” His voice was drained, almost lifeless.
Emma sighed gently. “I hate to say it, Mr. Lawrence, but under these circumstances, getting the assets reallocated is basically impossible.”
“This divorce agreement? It’s airtight. Clearly crafted by someone who knew what they were doing.”
“Either she got serious legal counsel or straight-up asked someone to draft it for her. No loopholes. The house, the car, all the bank savings—it’s all legally hers now. You?”
Emma shook her head slightly. “You walked away with nothing.”
She took a small sip of her coffee, giving the man across from her a look filled with genuine sympathy.
What a mess. Their marriage lasted only three years, and just like that, it was over.
From owning property and having a wife to being broke and alone—you couldn’t fall harder if you tried.
“Well, thank you, Ms. Sullivan,” Ethan exhaled, reaching for his phone. “How much do I owe you? Do you take WeChat or Alipay?”
This wasn’t his first consultation. She was already the third lawyer he’d spoken to. Same answer, every time.
“No need,” Emma waved it off. “I didn’t exactly help you much.”
She wasn’t going to charge him for a fifteen-minute chat, especially when the guy already looked like he’d hit rock bottom.
“Thanks,” Ethan said gratefully, accepting the gesture, knowing his wallet could barely handle anything else.
He stood, gave the kind and stunning attorney a respectful nod, then left the room quietly.
The door had barely shut behind Ethan when a crisp sound of high heels echoed through the hallway. In stepped a woman in a sky-blue suit, with a neat short haircut.
She strolled in, sat right on the edge of the conference table next to Emma without hesitation, taking advantage of her height to perch there comfortably.
“Wow,” she teased, “Didn’t even charge him? What’s this, a little crush on the client?”
This was Sophia Sutton—Emma’s business partner and the owner of Sullivan & Sutton Law Firm.
Perched on the table, her long legs crossed, she looked at her best friend with a playful smirk.
Emma rolled her eyes. “Ugh, you and that mouth. I just felt sorry for him, okay?”
“He probably would’ve felt the two hundred bucks more than his rent,” she added.
Sophia laughed. “Look at you, all soft-hearted.”
Then, crossing her arms, she leaned in slightly, eyes twinkling. “But seriously... that divorce agreement? I wrote it.”
“…Huh?”
Emma’s jaw dropped a little, her delicate features frozen in disbelief.
“No way. You helped the bad guy pull it off?”Right after she said that, Emma reached out and pinched Sophia hard on the thigh.
“Ow! That hurts!”
“Do you have to be so aggressive?” Sophia whined, rubbing the red spot and pouting. “All she wanted was a divorce agreement drafted. How was I supposed to know she was setting him up?”
“Is that so…” Emma let out a low chuckle. Deep down, she knew it wasn’t fair to blame Sophia.
A client paying you to draft a divorce agreement—of course a lawyer would take the job. It’s easy money with no strings attached.
Still, what were the odds? Ethan's ex-wife went to Sophia for the divorce papers, and the poor guy ended up right back at their firm looking for help.
“This case’s a dead end, huh?”
Emma glanced at her friend. Sophia was three years older and had seen more of the legal world.
“Yeah, lately there’ve been more ‘fake divorce turned real’ cases. But even if you take it to court, the side that’s tricked usually loses. The rare ones that actually get ruled invalid—that’s only if you have massive evidence. Like a home surveillance recording of them talking about the plan or the affair partner taking the stand.”
Sophia looked out the window, mentally flipping through similar cases. “Any chance there’s security footage from home? Or can that guy show up in court?”
Emma lightly touched her chin, suddenly alert. “Right, I should check if Ethan had cameras in the house—or maybe dig up this guy his ex’s with now…”
Without another word, she jumped up and took off.
“Hey!” Sophia called after her, watching Emma disappear through the door. “You really got a thing for him or what? Why so invested?”
Down in the lobby of the Bright Tower, Ethan wandered toward the exit, looking like a ghost.
Just last month, he had celebrated his thirtieth birthday.
That day, Amy had surprised him—told him he was going to be a dad.
Two big pieces of good news at once. Ethan was over the moon.
At the party, Amy brought up buying a place in a top school district. But under Jiangcheng’s housing policy, couples with a home already would have to buy at second-home rates, which meant way higher loan interest.
So Amy suggested a “fake divorce,” where they'd split on paper but keep everything the same, to save money on the mortgage.
Ethan thought it was no big deal—plenty of couples did it, right? Just a formality.
A few days later, they signed the divorce papers. Ethan even scribbled his signature confidently on the agreement Amy found online.
Legally, they were now total strangers.
But their life didn’t change much. They went to work as usual, even toured a few school district properties together. Amy kept saying each one wasn’t quite right, that they should be patient.
Ethan agreed. Everything seemed fine.
But the moment the divorce cooling-off period ended and the paperwork was finalized, everything flipped.
While Ethan was away on a trip, Amy sold all their property.
When he came home, the place was empty. Gone. No furniture, no Amy.
He tried to reach her, and all she said was, “We’re divorced. Leave me alone.”
It hit him like a truck.
At first, he didn’t believe she could be so cold. Maybe she had been manipulated or threatened?
But then he found out she had already moved on with someone new.
That’s when reality sank in.
The whole thing had been a trap from the start.
He’d just been a total fool—cheated and left with nothing.
Not only did she play him, but she made sure he walked away with absolutely zero.