Chapter 1 : THE MEETING

"Excuse me."

Fernando hurried to the LT Hotel with a parcel in his hand. It was almost evening, and soon his wife would be coming home from work. He had to deliver this parcel quickly, then return home to prepare dinner so she wouldn't get angry when he came home late.

Before long, Fernando arrived at the door of the presidential suite, as per the address on the note in his hand. Before he could breathe a sigh of relief, he had already pressed the doorbell hurriedly.

"Ding-dong..."

The bell rang several times, and soon the door opened.

"Nice to meet you. You..."

Fernando's words trailed off as his eyes caught sight of the figure standing at the door.

His mind immediately went blank. The parcel in his hand fell to the floor with a soft sound that echoed in the hotel corridor. The person who opened the door was no one else, but his own wife, Joyce.

And behind Joyce, stood a young man wearing only a bathrobe. His hair was still wet, as if he had just finished bathing.

Fernando recognized the man. He was Miguel, the son of a wealthy family in City B. The man who had always tried to seduce Joyce.

"Joyce... you..."

Fernando's voice trembled, and in an instant, his mind was filled with the pain of betrayal. His chest was tight, as if all the air in the room had disappeared.

Joyce looked surprised to see her husband standing at the door. But only for a moment.

Her face soon turned irritated, and she said in an impatient tone, "What?! Hurry up and go home! I'm so annoyed with you!"

Those words slapped Fernando's heart harder than anything else. His body felt numb.

But a few seconds later, he tried to force a bitter smile on his face.

"It's okay... I'm fine," he said softly. "You don't have to hide it from me. I know... I'm useless and have no future. I just hope... you can be happy."

Fernando looked down for a moment, swallowing the bitter taste in his throat.

"In three years of marriage, I know... you never had feelings for me," he continued quietly. "I signed the divorce papers. It's under the pillow in our room. You can sign them anytime."

He sighed heavily, his voice growing weaker. "You've suffered a lot in these three years. So... let's part on good terms, and hopefully we can each be happy."

He had often thought about those words. He thought that when the time came to leave, he would be able to do so without pain. But it wasn't. In fact, his heart felt like it was breaking into pieces.

"It's not what you think! You misunderstand me, Fernando, you're a fool!" Joyce exclaimed suddenly, trying to catch up with Fernando as he turned to leave.

But she was stopped in her tracks when Miguel interjected sarcastically.

"Joyce, why are you explaining useless things to him?" he said casually with a smile. "Just give him what he wants, divorce him! If you marry me later, I promise, I'll make you happy."

Joyce gave Miguel a sharp look. "You... did it on purpose, didn't you?" her voice was cold, accusatory. "You called me here and made Fernando come and deliver the parcel. You organized the whole thing, didn't you?"

"What do you mean, Joyce? Why would I do that?" Miguel feigned surprise, his voice sounding nervous.

Joyce clenched her fists. "Because I know who you really are. You are a despicable man!"

Her gaze then fell on the document that had fallen on the floor. "If my guess is correct, this important document you told Fernando to deliver must be a fake!"

She bent down to pick up the document. Miguel panicked, immediately trying to stop her. "Joyce, don't open it, it's a confidential company document!"

But it was too late.

The sound of tearing paper could be heard. The contents of the bundle scattered on the floor, and turned out to be just blank sheets of paper with no writing.

Joyce looked at Miguel with a cold expression. "So... are these your company's confidential documents?"

Miguel fell silent, unable to say anything.

"You despicable bastard!"

Joyce uttered one word of disgust, then turned to leave the room with quick steps and her high heels clomping loudly on the marble floor.

"So what if I'm despicable?!" Miguel shouted, then chased after Joyce and pulled her by the arm. "I did all this for you, Joyce! All for you!"

She stared at him with eyes reddened with anger.

"As long as you divorce that useless man, I can help the Nagel Group out of its financial crisis! But why won't you? Why do you keep choosing him?!"

Miguel gave Joyce a desperate look. "What good is that man? He's poor, has no skills, and is a nobody! I graduated from a top university. My family has a hundred million dollars in assets. I have villas, luxury cars, and tens of millions of dollars in savings! I can give it all to you!"

Joyce looked at Miguel silently, then replied calmly, "Because... he's the only one who can give me security. You... don't."

After saying that, Joyce dismissed Miguel's hand and walked away from Hotel LT without looking back.

"You stupid woman!"

Miguel punched the wall hard, his face full of anger.

"I'll see... how that asshole can make you feel safe!"

Full of emotion, he ran back into the presidential suite, grabbed his cell phone from the coffee table, and dialed a number.

"Lucas," he said in a cold tone. "Go to Joyce’s house. Tell her mother to finalize the divorce before Joyce gets home. I want everything done by tonight."

***

On the streets of City B, it was busy as usual. Pedestrians passed by, hurrying to avoid the rain that had begun to fall. The sound of thunder boomed loudly.

Boom! Boom!

Then the rain poured down the streets. Fernando walked against the current, soaking wet without an umbrella, staring blankly at the ground. His heart was heavy, his mind tangled. He didn't know where to go.

Now, he was just someone with no home, no direction.

Three years ago, he was a scion of the Quinn family, one of the richest families in the capital, a respected scion of the nobility.

But everything changed. Three years ago, he was expelled from the Quinn family. The veins in his hands and feet were severed in a family power struggle. While lying on the street, Michael, Joyce's father, helps him out of compassion.

Michael had no sons. He felt Fernando was an honest and simple man, so after Fernando recovered, he married him to his daughter, Joyce.

But after the marriage, Fernando's life was no longer easy. The entire Nagel family hated him. Especially after Michael had an accident two years ago and became vegetative, they blamed Fernando, called him a jinx, and even treated him with contempt.

But Fernando never complained. He persevered, because for him, being able to marry Joyce, a wonderful woman, was already a blessing from God. He thought that as long as he loved her and tried hard, that love would be enough.

But gradually he realized, true love is not about constantly sacrificing alone. True love is when you can make the person you love happy.

And he had no ability to do so.

"He must have just broken up with his girlfriend," a teenager under the umbrella chided, looking at Fernando who was walking aimlessly.

"Haha, what a pity. Losers like that deserve to be alone," his friend laughed.

"They say he's a courier. He doesn't even have a house! His only life is delivering packages! Haha!"

Fernando looked down, letting the taunts pass him by. He was too tired to care.

But suddenly, a Rolls-Royce stopped right in front of him. Two Mercedes-Benz S600s followed behind it.

From one of the Mercedes, a man in a black suit got out hurriedly, then ran towards Fernando while opening a large black umbrella, covering his body from the rain.

A few seconds later, an elderly silver-haired man stepped out of the Rolls-Royce, surrounded by bodyguards in suits and umbrellas. He walked slowly towards Fernando, then bowed in a respectful manner.

"Mr. Fernando..." his voice trembled. "We have finally found you."