Chapter 2

Bernice fumed, her hand raised to strike Elise. "Elise—" Andrew cast his dejected gaze at Bernice. "We've been married for three years. I thought you'd know me well by now, but I never realized you saw me like this. But I guess I never truly understood you, either—our expectations of each other were never aligned. It seems we weren't meant to be." After saying that, Andrew shifted his gaze to the well-dressed man behind Bernice. "Lately, I've heard many rumors about you two being inseparable. I assume our divorce is primarily because of him, right?" Bernice's reply was cold. "That's right." With a smug smile, the well-dressed man said, "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Bernard Clarke, the general manager of the Clarke Corporation and Bernice's future business partner." Andrew felt a pang in his heart. Still, he maintained a smile on his face. "Oh, I see. Well, I hope you find happiness." Then, Andrew's gaze shifted to Bernice's neck. "Could you please return the emerald pendant necklace? It's a keepsake from my parents, and you shouldn't have it." Bernice removed the necklace and handed it to him. Then, she surprised him by pulling out a bank card. "Even though you chose to leave with nothing, I'm not heartless. Here's five million dollars. Consider it my compensation for you. Find a small town to settle down in, and it'll be enough for you to live a worry-free life." "Are you trying to make it up to me?" Andrew commented with a hint of mockery, "Five million dollars doesn't even come close to compensating what you owe me, Bernice. But thank you for the wake-up call. Now, I can finally be myself again." With that, Andrew left without sparing another glance at the card. Upon seeing that, Elise quickly chased after Andrew. However, Bernice stopped her and threatened, "If you leave now, I'll stop paying for your college tuition!" Elise seethed with anger as tears streamed down her face. "Trust me, Bernice. You'll regret divorcing your husband!" Bernice watched Andrew's retreating figure, a hollow ache settling deep within her. The anticipated joy of freedom was replaced by a gnawing sense of loss, as if she'd carelessly discarded something precious. Leaving the Collins residence, Andrew couldn't shake the feeling of a bitter joke hanging in the air. He had never wronged Bernice throughout the three years they were married, yet he was met with this unexpected turn of events. Yet, Andrew wasn't one to wallow. With no ties between them, it was best for each of them to go their separate ways and move forward with their lives. Andrew's phone suddenly rang. He answered the call. "Dad—" A harsh voice cut him off. "Shut up! Don't you dare call me Dad!" A cold snort followed. "The Hughes family is a name of prestige in Josona. I never imagined I'd have to deal with a good-for-nothing like you. "Why did you turn down the billion-dollar inheritance? What's so interesting about learning medicine in the mountains? "Look at your sisters—military prodigies, weapon developers, and you? Why did you marry a woman with an average family background on top of everything else? You've brought shame to the Hughes family! Are you trying to piss me and your grandpa off?" With furrowed brows, Andrew said, "Actually, we're divorced now." The older generation in his family had disapproved of Bernice from the start, believing he had stooped too low and disgraced the family. Andrew was convinced they would be overjoyed upon learning about his divorce. "What? Excellent! You've finally come to your senses. Now come back to us, and we can get things back on track with those plans we discussed." Andrew promptly rejected his dad's request. "I'm not coming back, Dad. I need some space." "Fine. You've got yourself another three months. I expect you to come back and celebrate your grandpa's 80th birthday. "By the way, your grandpa has an old friend from his wartime days at Thenswy. He's pretty sick, and the situation isn't looking good. Your grandpa wants you to visit him. "Also, his granddaughter is quite the catch, and we had arranged a marriage between you and her. Since you're single now, you should get to know her—" Andrew cut him off, his voice icy. "I'll see what I can do with Grandpa's friend. Send someone to pick me up. Alright, I'm hanging up." … As Andrew exited the elevator, he was met by his ex-mother-in-law, Darlene Sanders, and his ex-brother-in-law, Favian Collins. Darlene crossed her arms and blocked Andrew's path, eyeing his luggage. "Andrew Hughes! You and Bernice are divorced already! And yet, here you are, attempting to take something from our home!" Andrew was taken aback. "Did you already know about the divorce, Mom?" "Stop calling me that. It makes my skin crawl." Darlene looked at Andrew with disdain and smugly said, "Just so you know, I talked Bernice into divorcing you. "Know your place. A loser like you isn't worthy of Bernice. Bernice is running a company that is about to go public, and her net worth is in the tens of millions of dollars!" Darlene's remarks left Andrew speechless. He was devastated by the Collins family's indifference. Favian coldly snapped, "Hand over the money Bernice has compensated you for the divorce. If you don't, you're not going anywhere!" With a cold expression, Andrew replied, "I didn't ask for anything from Bernice—not even a penny!" "Shush! Don't take us as fools. We won't believe your lies, so give us back our money. It belongs to the Collins family and has nothing to do with you." Darlene grabbed Andrew's luggage and yelled, "Since you're not handing it over, we'll find it ourselves!" Darlene and Favian rummaged through Andrew's belongings, turning them upside down. However, they couldn't find a dime. Andrew gritted his teeth as they searched, his anger simmering beneath the surface. Andrew did everything he could for the family in the past three years, yet they treated him poorly in return. Moreover, he hadn't taken Bernice's money. But even if he had, he believed he deserved it. Suddenly, Favian produced the emerald pendant necklace Andrew had stowed away in his luggage. "Mom, look what I found." Darlene glanced over, eyeing the necklace. "Oh, didn't this loser give this to Bernice? How could he possibly bring himself to take it back? "Hey, since you gave the necklace to Bernice, it belongs to the Collins family. You have no right to take it back." Andrew fixed them with a steely gaze. "The necklace is a family heirloom. Give it back!" Favian flung the necklace at Andrew, yelling, "Fine! Take it!" "You bastard!" Andrew shouted, catching the necklace. He then unhesitatingly delivered a slap to Favian, sending him sprawling to the ground. Upon seeing this, Darlene shouted at the top of her lungs, "Help! Someone call the police!"