Chapter 2

I'd suspected for a long time that Priscilla was half out the door of our relationship.

About a month ago, she'd posted a social media update. Flowers, wine, steak—everything was done in exactly the style she liked. In one corner of the photo, a man's wrist had been visible, with a very expensive watch peeking out.

Back in the day, just because Priscilla had said that she didn't want to be too far away from me, I'd given up going to a prestigious university in a different city and chosen a local university instead.

In her senior year of high school, I'd tutored her every single day, just so her grades could reach the cutoff for the university we both attended now.

In freshman year, she'd tugged at my sleeve as her tears fell. Every tear had been a hammer on my heart, making my chest go numb with heartache.

I'd wanted to reach out and wipe her tears away, but I'd feared that my fingers, rough and callused from constantly gripping a hoe, would hurt her delicate skin.

So, when she told me her roommate was some rich, spoiled socialite who always dressed in Chanel and carried Hermès bags, I'd promised to buy them for her despite not having heard of those brands before.

During that time, I'd skipped class every day to work. A day only had 24 hours, and I'd wished I didn't have to sleep at all just so I could earn more money.

When I'd finally given Priscilla her first Gucci bag, her eyes had lit up like there'd been stars in them. She'd thrown herself into my arms and said sweetly, "Gideon, I know how you feel about me. I'll be your girlfriend."

In that moment, I would've given her my life if she'd asked.

After we officially became a couple, I'd rarely said no to Priscilla. I'd covered her living expenses and often given her extra money to buy clothes and bags.

But she'd wanted more and more, and I'd slowly realized that what I earned from part-time jobs would never be enough.

So, I'd started teaching myself programming, trying to make money with my brain instead. Later, I'd discovered that even though my major was agriculture, most of it focused on modern, high-tech farming. The programming I'd learned became a powerful boost.

Because of my grades, I'd gotten to know quite a few entrepreneurs. One of them had turned out to be my biological father—the richest man in Javonbury.

After being reunited with my father, the money I had just kept growing, and the things Priscilla wore had become more and more expensive.

I'd been afraid Mom would be upset, so I'd never made public who my father was. And because I'd been busy all the time, the only way I could make it up to Priscilla was by giving her money.

I used to think I was lucky because Priscilla wasn't greedy. If she'd wanted both my money and my constant company, I really would've been stretched to the breaking point.

But now, the realization dawned on me—she'd never thought much of me as a person from the very beginning. From start to finish, she'd only ever wanted to use me.

I stared at the panties in front of me and at Priscilla, whose ears were red. Suddenly, I felt disgusted.

It was my birthday, yet she hadn't texted me all day. She claimed she was on a diet and couldn't eat cake, but she was all for having barbecue with Jeremy.

She hadn't suddenly gone rotten. She'd been rotten from the start.

Jeremy stuffed the panties into his pocket and looked at Priscilla with a teasing smile. "Since you're not taking them, I guess you want me to keep them as a souvenir."

She playfully slapped his chest, while he just wrapped an arm around her waist in return. With a tug, my girlfriend fell straight into another man's arms, her full chest pressed tightly against him.

My eyes burned. I dug my nails so deep into my palms that they broke the skin, yet I felt no pain.

In a daze, I saw ten-year-old Priscilla in front of me again, her hair in pigtails as she handed me a slice of juicy, ripe watermelon. "Gid, this is for you."

"What's a lowly farmer like you doing here?"

Jeremy's voice shattered my beautiful memory into pieces.

I stood there in the same old camouflage clothes I wore for working the fields, so worn that they'd turned pale at the seams. My pant legs were splattered with dirt from the mountains and the fields.

In front of me, Priscilla wore a perfectly tailored black dress and a pair of nude lambskin heels. As for Jeremy, he had on a custom outfit with no visible logo.

Next to them, I really did look like something the cat had dragged in.

"Why aren't you getting lost? We're about to have some fun in the car. What, are you planning to sit in the front seat and watch?" Jeremy snarled.

Priscilla covered his mouth with her hand, her voice sugary sweet as she whined, "I'm going to hit you if you keep talking nonsense!"

Then, she turned to me, her tone suddenly icy. "Gideon, you should head back. I'll be on time for tomorrow's meeting…"

The rest of her words were swallowed up as Jeremy captured her lips with his.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I swung my fist and smashed it straight into Jeremy's face.