Ten years a DINK. Then his mistress got pregnant.

I want to be dad. He announced.

I had two choices: take a $300 million settlement and divorce, or stay Mrs. Hayes and be the child's nominal mother.

He thought I'd pick the second. He knew how much I loved him.

But I chose the first without blinking.

I'd been reborn.

In my last life, I fought Richard's mistress my whole life. In the end, her son still seized all our assets.

This time, the money's mine. The freedom's mine. And maybe, a young man or two will be mine as well.


In my last life, I literally worked myself to death.

After discovering my husband Richard's affair, a cold, focused fury consumed me. I spent 48 sleepless hours plotting.

First, I sidelined him at Hayes Corp, seized control. Then I executed reforms so brutal our share price quintupled.

Richard's mistress, Jasmine, and her son, Kevin, were crushed under my heel. They hid abroad, too terrified to return or contact Richard.

Not a single Hayes family member dared to challenge me, not even Richard.

I thought I'd won.

Then I hit forty-five, still not pregnant. Years of grueling IVF, constant injections, and non-stop work took their toll. My body gave out. I collapsed and died on a business trip.

My body hadn't even been buried when Jasmine returned with her son. Richard, Jasmine, and Kevin wept, hugging each other as if they were the ones who'd suffered some great injustice.

My ashes and photo? Casually tossed into the trash.

Watching Jasmine eagerly move in and Kevin take over my company, I finally realized I'd spent my entire life building an empire for someone else.

That night, I heard Jasmine and Richard sharing sweet nothings in bed. Jasmine, teary-eyed, whispered to him, "Richard, you've suffered so much for me these past twenty years. You secretly got a vasectomy for me, and even deliberately set Sera up to pave the way for our son! Thank you, my love, I adore you."

Richard kissed Jasmine's forehead. "Jasmine, I love you too. You've been with me since you were twenty. I'd do anything for you."

No wonder no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get pregnant later on. Richard had gotten a vasectomy ages ago.

I couldn't tell if I felt regret or fury, only that my entire life had been a cruel joke.

I opened my eyes again, back to the moment Richard laid it all out for me.

He'd just gotten home from a business trip, still wearing the custom suit I'd ordered for him. He sat on the sofa, radiating an undeniable charm.

Richard sighed. "Sera, let's part amicably. Jasmine's pregnant. It was... an accident, but she's given me everything, and I can't abandon her."

"I'm going to marry her and keep this child. I'm afraid you'll have to make sacrifices."

"Besides the $300 million settlement for the divorce, I'll buy back your shares at market price. This villa we live in and the cars? They're yours. I truly owe you for all these years."

Honestly, Richard's terms were pretty generous. If I didn't love him, it would've been a total windfall.

But I'd known him since I was eighteen, married him at twenty. Richard built his empire, and I helped manage the company alongside him. Later, when his parents got older and their health declined, I stepped back to care for them.

I never imagined Richard would stab me in the back. And twist the knife.

That betrayal fueled a hatred so fierce, I burned the rest of that life on nothing but revenge.

Now, I gazed at my thirty-year-old face in the mirror.

My eyes looked tired, exhausted from cooking and managing the household for my in-laws. My clothes were dated, a testament to my frugality.

I reeked of "housewife." My heart ached. I felt a pang of pity for myself.

How had I let my life become this? Why hadn't I learned to enjoy it?

As I drifted, Richard repeated his demand for divorce. He sounded impatient. Just as he was about to deliver a warning, I calmly said, "Fine."

Richard froze. "What?"

"I agree to the divorce,"I repeated, my voice calm. "And to you buying back my shares at market price. Let's end this amicably."

Stunned by my decisiveness, he could only stare for a beat.

"As long as you agree," he muttered. "My lawyer will contact yours tomorrow."

Then he left in a hurry.

I took a deep breath. Turning around, I saw his parents on the second floor.

They'd known about Jasmine. They'd come for a show.

Seeing not a tear but cold resolve, their faces tightened with awkwardness. My mother-in-law forced a thin smile, nudged her husband, and they vanished.

I was left alone in the living room, savoring the reality of my rebirth.