On the day of our divorce, I froze his entire life

My husband's secretary decided to test the company's materials management system by taking advantage of my nap. She slapped a QR code sticker right onto my forehead and scrawled a note beneath it in black marker.

*Near-expiry inventory. Clearance sale.*

When I confronted her, Eva Harding laughed so hard she trembled. "Lily, don't be mad. I listed you on the secondhand market for fifty cents. Let's see if any scrap collectors want a spoiled heiress who only knows how to burn money."

The heavy crystal ashtray was in my hand before I could think. I hurled it at her head.

*Bang.*

Crystal exploded against the wall. Before the shards hit the floor, Nathan Butler had already yanked Eva behind him, shielding her with his own body.

"Lily! Eva worked all morning testing the new system. She was just joking with you. Is this worth getting so angry over?"

I didn't answer.

My gaze locked onto his collar, pulled askew in the commotion. The movement exposed the skin beneath his shirt. There, in the hollow of his collarbone, someone had written a crooked *"Eva"* in blue ballpoint ink.

It sat there, radiating a nauseating intimacy. That spot was a restricted areahe wouldn't even let *me* touch it.

"And what about this?" The words scraped out of my throat. My finger trembled as I pointed at the name. "Is this part of the system test too?"

Nathan froze. His gaze dropped. Discomfort flickered across his features, and he raised a hand to cover the ink.

"I drew it."

Eva's voice sliced through the tensionfast, crisp, dripping with coy innocence. She poked her head out from behind Nathan's back and stuck out her tongue.

"Last time Nathan had that four-hour multinational video meeting, I was waiting for signatures and got bored. So Nathan donated his collarbone for me to practice my calligraphy."

The rigid line of Nathan's shoulders dissolved. His furrowed brows relaxed. He reached back, helplessly tapping Eva's nose.

"Only you have so many tricks," he murmured. Indulgent. Fond.

The air conditioning blasted arctic cold, but scorching heat flooded my skull.

Nathan Butler was a man with severe mysophobia. His standards for appearance bordered on pathologicalhis shirts couldn't bear a single crease, let alone ballpoint scribbles on his skin. In the past, if I accidentally left a smudge of lipstick on his collar, he would frown and change immediately.

But now?

Now he treated this sloppy graffiti like a flirtatious game.

The office door, left ajar, swung open. Several female interns walked in clutching documents, their voices bright with gossip.

"I heard Mrs. Butler came to the company today? I really envy Mr. Butler. After being married so many years, his lock screen is still their proposal photo..."

The chatter died.

They saw Nathan shielding his secretary like she was made of glass. They saw methe wifewith a QR code plastered to my forehead and *"Clearance sale"* scrawled across my face.

Silence. Absolute silence.

The envy in their eyes curdled into stunned scrutiny. Then naked pity. The weight of their stares landed like a silent, stinging slap.

*Pfft.*

Eva couldn't contain it. She covered her mouth and giggled.

Only then did Nathan snap back. His expression darkened. He barked at the employees to leave, then turned to Eva, his voice dropping.

"Eva, you took this joke too far. Apologize to Lily."

That half-hearted scolding set Eva off like a match to gasoline.

"Why should I?"

Her eyes turned red in a split second. Tears spilled down her cheeks on command.

"You gave me tacit approval! You said as long as I'm happy, I can do anything in this office! Now that you see her getting angry, you dump all the blame on me?"

She sniffled, her voice climbing to a shout. "Isn't it just because she's a rich heiress and I'm just a wage slave?"

She wept like a tragic heroine, raising the ballpoint pen as if to smash it on the floor.

"You rich people are impossible to please! Do ordinary people not have the right to make a joke? Fine. I won't be an eyesore anymoreI'll leave!"

She covered her face and turned to rush out.

"Stop!"

Nathan didn't hesitate. Two strides and he caught her wrist, pulling her back. Her sobs crescendoed, her body swaying like she might faint. He sighed, restraining her struggles, his tone softening to something unbearably gentle.

"Alright, alright, stop crying. Who said they look down on you? It's such a small thingis it worth these tears?"

After soothing Eva, he finally turned to me.

The gentleness vanished. Only weariness remained.

"Lily, you saw it yourself. Eva is new to society. She's sensitive and has strong self-esteem. She's just childlikeshe likes to play. Don't lower yourself to her level. Let's just drop it, okay?"

A scoff tore from my chest. Something cold and tight wrapped around my ribs like iron bands.

Nathan sighed. He stepped forward, reaching to peel the sticker off my forehead. But the label was industrial-grade. The adhesive clung like it had fused with my skin.

The moment he pulled, pain flared across my hairline.

*Hiss.* I flinched, jerking my head away.

"Don't move." Annoyance sharpened his voice. "Stuck on this tight? Why didn't you dodge when she put it on?"

I stared at him.

*What kind of logic was this? A knife stabs into flesh, and you blame the flesh for being too soft?*

When he couldn't peel it off, he grabbed tissues and tried to wipe away the words *"Near-expiry inventory"* scrawled in marker.

Useless. Oil-based ink doesn't budge once it dries. Instead of cleaning it, he smeared the black ink across my forehead and brow bone like a massive bruise.

I didn't need a mirror. My carefully applied makeup was destroyed. I looked hideous.

*Pfft.*

Eva watched the spectacle, one hand pressed over her mouth, barely concealing her malicious delight.

"Nathan, stop wiping. The more you wipe, the more she looks like a painted opera mask." She checked her watch with exaggerated panic. "Oh no, it's almost six! The tech summit is starting. This is our big chance to showcase the new system to investors. We can't be late."

I slapped Nathan's hand away. Ice crept into my voice.

"Does she have even a shred of remorse?"

Nathan stiffened. His tone softened, but only slightly. "Lily, stop being angry. Back then, didn't you tell me Eva's background was pitiful? You asked me to take care of her. She's just fascinated by the new systems and wanted to interact with you."

My nails bit into my palms. The physical sting was nothing compared to the frost spreading through my chest.

Yes. I was the soft-hearted fool.

When Eva Harding couldn't afford tuition and cried while working the night shift at a convenience store, I felt pity. I pulled her out of her poverty, sponsored her through college, and when she couldn't find a job, I arranged for her to enter Nathan's company as a management trainee.

Back then, Nathan had complained endlessly.

Eva couldn't even format a spreadsheet. She jammed the printers constantly. She scalded clients with coffee. He would rub his temples and groan, "Lily, you really saddled me with a burden. She's so clumsyonly you would treat her like a treasure."

I had persuaded him to be patient.

I thought I was doing a good deed. Helping a girl change her fate.

I never imagined that after I handed her the ladder to climb out of the mud, she would kick it away and spit on me from the top.

Nathan checked his watch, then looked me over with clinical detachment.

"With the way you look right now... attending the banquet would be embarrassing for you and affect the company's image. Why don't you go home, wash your face, and calm down?"

*Company image.*

The words echoed in my skull. Absurd. My face was ruined by *his* secretary, enabled by *his* indulgence, and now *I* was the disgrace?

Nathan clearly had no interest in my feelings. He adjusted his cuffs, sliding back into his elite, polished persona.

"Be good. Don't make a scene. I'll bring you those late-night snacks you like when I come home."

Eva stuck to his side like glue. As she passed me, her head turned slightly.

In those almond eyes that usually feigned innocence, there was nothing but vicious provocation. She mouthed two words, silent and slow:

*"Subsidized disposal."*

The door clicked shut.

I watched Nathan's back as he led her away without a single glance behind him.

The last thread of nostalgia I held for our marriage snapped clean.

"Nathan Butler."

My voice fell into the empty room.

"If this is how you want to handle it, I don't accept it."

Since he couldn't manage his secretary, I wouldn't mind using my own methods to teach her a lesson.

---

The address my private detective sent was familiar.

Painfully so.

An inconspicuous six-story apartment building in the old southern district. I owned properties across the globe, but this tiny unit was the sanctuary of my heart.

In college, after catching my father with his illegitimate child, I cut ties with my family and refused their money. It was Nathan who picked me up from the dorms and brought me to this rental.

He had clumsily learned to cook porridge for me. He had spent his meager scholarship money to buy me expensive strawberries. He had held me there, promising, *"Lily, this is your home now. A harbor I built for you. No one will ever make you suffer again."*

When I eventually took control of my family's empire, the first thing I did was buy the building. I didn't renovate. I kept it exactly as it wasa memorial to our love.

But now, Nathan had taken the "harbor" he promised me and given it to another woman without a word.

When I arrived with my bodyguards, the door was unlocked.

I pushed it open.

A wave of cloying, sweet aromatherapy scent hit me like a wall.

Everything had changed.

The gray linen sofa I had chosengone. Replaced by tacky pink lace. The sketch Nathan had drawn for me on the wallcovered by a massive vanity-style portrait of Eva Harding pouting and making a peace sign.

Not a single trace of me remained.

Eva stood in the living room wearing a silk slip dress and a facial mask, mid-pace. When she saw me, she froze.

Then, slowly, unhurriedly, she peeled the mask off her face.

And tossed it into the trash.

"What are you doing here?"

"This is my home. Get out."

Her tone was the kind you'd use on a stray cat pawing at the trashdismissive, irritated, beneath contempt.

A dark laugh scraped out of my throat. I took in the sight of her: this woman who had crawled into my nest, standing in the middle of the home she'd defiled, chin lifted like she owned the air I breathed.

I didn't waste a single word on her.

I turned to the bodyguards behind me. My voice came out cold. Surgical.

"Trash the place."

Professionals don't hesitate.

Eva Harding's limited-edition handbagthe one she'd been clutching like a newbornsplit open with a single slash.

"What are you doing? Stop it!"

She shrieked and lunged, but two guards caught her mid-stride, pinning her arms to her sides. She thrashed against their iron grip like a fish on a deck.

Useless.

"Lily Sawyer, are you *insane*? Nathan bought this house for *me*!"

I walked past her as if she were furniture. The plush pink sofaher tacky choice, naturallysank under my weight as I sat down and crossed my legs.

"Eva Harding."

My voice was low. Unhurried. It filled the room anyway.

"You really should have thought this through."

I let the silence stretch.

"My last name is Jiang. Did you honestly believe you could touch me and still survive in this city?"

I tilted my head.

"Did you think Nathan Butler has the power to protect you from *me*?"

The blood drained from her face in real-timea slow leak, like watching paint peel. She knew the weight of my family name. It was a titan she couldn't afford to provoke.

Defiance still flickered behind her eyes.

But fear kept her feet rooted to the floor.

I lost interest in her little performance. My phone slid out of my pocket, and I leaned back into the cushions, scrolling lazily through my feed.

My thumb stopped.

Eva Harding had posted an update thirty minutes ago.

A photo.

In it, a QR code was plastered across my forehead. The marker ink had bled into my skin, staining it like some hideous, dark birthmark.

The caption was a single word:

*Buy?*

And directly beneath it, a comment from Nathan Butler.

*Not buying.*

Something cold and sharp curled at the corners of my mouth.

Since taking the helm of the Jiang family, very few people had managed to provoke me quite like Eva Harding.

I looked up at herstill pinned like a butterfly under glassand lifted my phone to my ear.

"Hello? Is this the tattoo parlor?"

"Pack your gear. Call every artist you know in the area and get to the south-side villa. I have a major business deal for you."

Eva must have sensed the shift in the air. Her eyes went wide, and she started thrashing wildly.

"Lily Sawyer! What are you doing? You wouldn't *dare*!"

I didn't answer.

Thirty minutes later, half the city's tattoo artists were crowded into the living room.

They took one look at the wrecked furniture, the restrained woman, and then at me.

Tactfully, they asked no questions.

"Boss, what are the orders?"

I pointed a manicured nail at Eva, now pinned to the floor like a dead fish.

"Cover her in QR codes. Permanent ink."

"Set the scan link to a secondhand marketplace. The product name will be 'Used Inventory.' And the price..."

I tapped my chin, pretending to consider.

"Make it cheap. Twenty-five cents."

"Lily Sawyer! You vicious *bitch*! You'll rot in hell for this!"

Eva tried to scream more, but a guard clamped a hand over her mouth. They dragged her toward the bedroom, the squad of artists trailing behind with their buzzing machines.

I sat back.

Relaxed.

When the first QR code was finished, I walked in, scanned it with my phone, and checked the link.

Perfect.

I forwarded the URL directly to Nathan.

*Your sweetheart. $0.25 clearance sale. Buying or not?*

Less than thirty minutes later, the screech of tires tearing up the driveway echoed from below.

Nathan Butler burst through the door, sweat glistening on his temples, panic carved into every line of his face.

I remained on the sofa.

Unbothered.

I didn't even look up. I simply raised a finger and pointed toward the bedroom.

Nathan followed my gesture.

He sprinted.

An earth-shattering wail erupted from the bedroom.

"Nathan! I can't live like thisthat *lunatic* ruined me!"

Eva's voice was so shrill it sounded like her throat was tearing itself apart.

Nathan stormed out.

His face was a mask of livid furya rage I had never seen before, burning white-hot behind his eyes.

His fists were clenched so tight his knuckles went bloodless, veins bulging along his forearms like cords.

"Lily Sawyer, have you lost your *mind*?!"

He practically roared the words.

"Do you have any idea what you've done? Using such filthy, low-class methodsare you trying to destroy her life?"

I stood up slowly.

Smoothed my skirt.

Met his murderous gaze with a cold laugh.

"Destroy her?"

"When she took a permanent marker to my facewhen she made me the laughingstock of the companydid she stop to think about destroying *me*?"

I stepped closer.

"Nathan, she wrote her own fate."

"That is *not* the same!" He sputtered, flustered and furious. "She was just jokingit was childish playing around! You are *physically scarring* her!"

"Oh?"

I dragged the syllable out, dripping with mockery.

"So when she humiliates me, it's a 'joke.' But when I return the favor, I'm 'vicious.'"

The bedroom door creaked.

Eva stumbled out.

Her hair was a bird's nest. Her skin was marred by the ridiculous, ugly black squares of the QR codes, stamped across her arms, her collarbone, the side of her neck.

She looked as though all the life had been drained from her body.

She collapsed into Nathan's arms.

"Nathan..."

A sob. A gasp for air. One hand clutching her lower abdomen.

"My stomach... it hurts so much. The stress, the pain... Nathan, save our baby."

*Baby?*

The smile froze on my face.

The word was a serrated bladestabbed precisely into the softest part of my chest and twisted.

So.

It had come to this.

A bitter laugh bubbled in my throat. I laughed at myselffor treating this shabby rental apartment like a sacred temple of our love.

Nathan stiffened as he held her.

Guilt flickered across his eyes. Panic. He couldn't even look at me.

But the remorse was fleeting.

Eva's weeping pulled him back, fueling his anger, allowing him to convert that tiny spark of guilt into a towering inferno of rageall of it directed at me.

"Lily!"

He scooped the trembling Eva into his arms, holding her with a tenderness and anxiety he had *never* shown me.

He glared at me, his eyes cold, as if looking at a mortal enemy.

"You really are becoming a monster."

"If anything happens to Eva or the child, I will destroy you."

With that final threat, he carried his precious cargo and rushed out without looking back.

The heavy slam of the door felt like a slap across my face.

I stood alone in the wrecked living room, listening to the engine roar to life downstairs, marking their decisive departure.

After a long silence, I finally laughed aloud.

The sound was hollow. It bounced off the walls and came back empty.

I pulled out my phone and dialed my assistant.

"Hello?"

"Freeze every bank card under Nathan Butler's name."

"Immediately. Do it now."