When we got married, all the Senators and Generals in the district were fighting to be the godfathers of our future children. My husband, a Major, wasn't in a rush. Every year, he filed a request to delay starting a family. I thought he was just busy with work and not ready to welcome a child. Until I stumbled upon a post by a "Mommy Blogger." In the post, she shared in detail how she met, fell in love with, and had a child with her current lover. The comments section, however, sensed something was off. "Is the blogger a mistress? Whose legitimate husband doesn't get a marriage license, doesn't go public, and isn't home by 11 PM every night?" "Does the blogger know about this? Does the guy's wife know?" The mommy blogger admitted her status as a mistress without hesitation, and even bragged, "So what if I'm the other woman? The one who isn't loved is the third wheel. I just missed the timing to marry him." "As for his wife, whether she's a Senator's daughter or a General's daughter, no matter how powerful she is, she's still the loser to me." The comments section was in an uproar, but I felt like I had fallen into an ice cave. Because from those scattered words, I pieced together a terrifying truth. That clueless, pitiful wife was me. 1 These past few days, Ethan Sterling had been leaving early and returning late, so busy he couldn't even eat properly. I knew the military exercise in his district was coming to an end, a critical time. As usual, I helped Ethan tidy up his study, but I saw the final draft of the operation plan on the desk. Without hesitation, I drove to his base, thinking I wouldn't miss the afternoon briefing. Bored on the road, I scrolled through my phone and saw that mommy blogger's post. The safety charm bracelet on the man's wrist in the picture caught my attention. I recognized it at a glance. It was the bracelet I hand-made for Ethan's birthday last year, from polishing the raw materials to braiding it. My heart skipped a beat, but I forced myself to calm down. But a few minutes after the woman admitted to being a mistress, the post was deleted. My guess verified, I suppressed my trembling hands and clicked on the account's homepage. The updates weren't frequent, each one a little woman's ramblings and some PDA pictures: "Daughter is born! Mr. S calls her Little Dumpling. Looks like another daughter slave!" "Little Dumpling always cries at night, I can't rest well. Mr. S feels sorry for me and gave me a limited edition necklace." I knew the owner of this account. It was Bella White, Ethan's junior from the military academy. The man's face in the photos was covered, but I was already sure that Mr. S was Ethan, who had been with me for seven years. Until today, the account updated this: "Three years with Mr. S, may we be happy forever!" My hands couldn't stop shaking. It wasn't until I arrived at the base gate that I realized tears had completely blurred my vision. Confront him? Or pretend to know nothing and continue living in confusion? When my consciousness returned, I was already in the family reception room of the base. At the same time I saw Ethan, I also saw the young woman and the stroller beside him. Everything in that account was confirmed. The impact of the pictures turning into reality still almost made me faint. The child in the stroller looked two or three years old, with chubby cheeks, wearing a mini military uniform. Bella wore elegant and playful makeup, exquisite down to her manicured nails. Bella blew on the soup and brought it to Ethan's mouth. Ethan looked doting, his eyes never leaving her. The child in the stroller didn't understand, giggling and babbling: "Dada, Mama! Happy!" Ethan clearly hadn't realized he left the operation plan at home, looking unhurried: "Bella, why did you come to the base today instead of resting at home?" Bella looked嗔怪: "Little Dumpling was sick a few days ago, and you were working non-stop. I felt sorry for you!" So the busy period wasn't due to the mission, but because the child was sick. Yet I felt sorry for Ethan, sitting in the living room until late at night waiting for him to return. Bella sighed after speaking: "When can I be by your side openly? Little Dumpling is getting bigger, how do I explain to her in the future?" Ethan held Bella's hand as if making a promise: "I let you call me hubby, and all my comrades only recognize you as their sister-in-law. You're still not satisfied." "There are still many chores to deal with at home now. I can't bear for you to work hard. Chloe does it very handily." Bella didn't seem to buy it, frowning: "What about Little Dumpling? How can she do without a father by her side like last time? I don't mind, but you can't let Little Dumpling be shameful for her whole life." Raising my hand, I saw the dazzling matching rings on their ring fingers. That set was the one I had liked for a long time. When ordering, Ethan said the female version wasn't my size, but to not disappoint me, he specially found a replacement. I thought he loved me, but I didn't expect the original ring to be on someone else's hand long ago. 2 I wiped away my tears again and again until my eyes were dry. Bella's words were harsh, and Ethan became irritable. He pulled at his collar, but still coaxed her with restraint: "Don't worry, I will give you and Little Dumpling an explanation." "But think about it, Chloe has been with me for so long. Her dad promoted me a lot before he passed away. I can't just go back and divorce her suddenly." Bella threw a tantrum completely, her exquisite eyelashes trembling as she spoke. "What do you mean by that? If you feel so sorry for Chloe, why did you provoke me? Boohoo, poor Little Dumpling, your daddy doesn't have us in his heart!" The child was too young to understand these words, but seeing Bella cry while holding her, she also started sobbing. The two of them became tearful figures. After all, this was the military base. Even in the family reception room, they couldn't make a scene. Ethan had to soften his tone even more and hugged the mother and daughter: "Wifey, wifey, I was wrong, okay? Soon, okay? Very very soon, I'll make you Mrs. Sterling, okay?" I smiled, suddenly feeling relieved. I took out my phone and recorded the scene in front of me, then wiped my tears. I tore the operation plan in my hand into pieces, threw them into the trash can, turned around, and left. On the way back, my phone notification rang. Bella had updated again. This time the picture was two large hands of a man and a woman wrapping a child's fist, with the caption: "Dear Mr. S, thank you for your promise. I will wear the most beautiful wedding dress to become your wife." The comments section of this post exploded. I clicked in one by one and found Ethan's comrades inside. "Ooh ooh, are Officer S and Miss Y finally going to get married?" "I'm crying to death. A family of three must be neat and tidy. Sister-in-law, I will always support you!" "Is the shy junior finally going to marry her dream officer?" Looking at those comments, it would be a lie to say my heart didn't ache. So everyone knew Ethan had a new "wife," and only I was kept in the dark. After being busy for so many years, in the end, it seemed like I became the one breaking up someone else's family. I finished reading all the comments and scrolled to the bottom. In a corner no one noticed, someone mentioned me: "What about S&C?" That comment was the only one not replied to or deleted. As if mocking me, being forgotten, ignored, betrayed. I used to believe Ethan loved me very much. We grew up in the military compound, and we had been married for seven years alone. Ethan and I never had children. He said we were both young and wanted to contribute more to the military, and I didn't want to be tied down by children. I didn't know if I should say Ethan was considerate of me or if we coincided. No matter how the family urged, Ethan blocked it for me. Friends and family thought we loved each other and just wanted to live as a couple. Besides busy with my own work, I managed Ethan's daily life in an orderly manner. He couldn't do without me for big or small matters. The seven-year itch, I knew it would be cold, but I didn't expect such a big surprise. I took screenshots of everything for evidence, exited Bella's homepage, Opened the official website of the Research Institute to register, and unhesitatingly participated in this international scientific research exchange program. It's time for me to consider myself. 3 My mentor had invited me countless times to participate in exchange programs abroad, but I refused. The reason was funny and simple. Because the exchange was at least four years, I couldn't bear to leave Ethan in the country. Now it's fine, everything is in time. I just received the success message after registration when Ethan called. I guess he finally realized he didn't bring his operation plan. I put my phone on Do Not Disturb and watched Ethan call eighteen times in one breath. Seeing that I didn't answer for a long time, his text bombardment also came: "Chloe, check my desk to see if there is a file bag with the operation plan inside." "Chloe, why aren't you answering the phone? Did you see my message?" "Call me back immediately when you see this." "Chloe, where did you go? Reply to me immediately." Watching him jumping and breaking down on the other end of the phone, I sneered and turned it off. Back home, I cleaned up the messy things in the house. I packed up the love souvenirs I once cherished and sold them to the scrap collector. The love letters he wrote to me, the military models he made for me, and other miscellaneous things were sold for a total of seventeen dollars and fifty cents, buying out all our emotions. Sure enough, it's worthless. After packing, I made up for a good sleep. I was woken up by Ethan at night. He questioned me as soon as he got home: "Chloe, where did you go today! I sent you so many messages and called you so many times, why did you ignore me?" I found it a bit ridiculous. Does he really treat me as his orderly, having to be on call at any time? "I wasn't feeling well and didn't look at my phone. What's wrong?" I took my time. Ethan scratched his hair irritably: "I can't find my operation plan. I might have left it at home and wanted you to send it to me, but it's okay, I explained to my superiors, I'll look again tomorrow." I stretched and didn't bother to look at him: "Oh, then come back and find it yourself." Ethan seemed to finally realize my mood was wrong, his voice softened a bit: "What's wrong, Chloe? Was my voice too fierce just now? I'm sorry, I was just anxious..." I spread my hands, looking indifferent. Anyway, he calls everyone wifey. Who knows how many wives he actually has? "No, I don't see it at home. Maybe you left it at your other home." Ethan's face panicked for a moment, and I quickly added: "After all, you often go to your comrades' homes for dinner or something, right?" 4 I took in all of Ethan's wonderful expressions. Ethan breathed a sigh of relief and wanted to come over and hug me. Just then his phone rang. Ethan glanced at the phone. It was an unsaved number, but his expression was subtle, then he looked up at me. "Why not answer?" I pretended to be reasonable. Ethan raised his hand and touched my head. I looked at him, suppressing my nausea. "Okay, I'll listen to you. I'll go answer it." Ethan went down the steps, took the phone to the balcony, and started calling. In the past, when he avoided me to answer calls, I assumed they were military calls and gave him enough space. But today is different from the past. This time I quietly hid at the balcony door and heard his conversation. "Didn't I say don't contact me when I'm at home? I feel like she was a bit suspicious today." Ethan's voice was a bit impatient, trying hard to suppress his temper. Whatever was said on the other end, Ethan sighed and his voice softened: "Good Bella, I didn't mean that. We want to divorce but we can't let her find out, can't let her have leverage, right?" "Mm-hmm, I know, good Bella. I'll come over right now, okay? You and Little Dumpling just wait for me obediently." I pretended nothing happened and went back to sit on the bed. Ethan walked out, sat by the bed and wanted to hug me. I dodged calmly: "What's wrong?" "Chloe, I didn't bring the operation plan today, and the mission report was postponed. The superiors weren't very happy. I have to go socialize and apologize today, so I won't keep you company." I looked understanding. It wasn't convenient for me to pack things while he was home anyway. It's good that he leaves quickly. But I still wanted to see how important Bella was in his heart. "But it's already late. You haven't kept me company for days. I miss you." I spoke against my conscience, suppressing nausea to see his reaction. Ethan looked at his phone, tangled in his heart: "Chloe, I promise you, I'll keep you company tomorrow, okay? Understand me." I looked into his eyes, somewhat forgetting his original appearance. The current Ethan made me feel so strange and disappointed. "Okay, go ahead." Ethan quickly put on his uniform and went out as if liberated. I opened my phone and clicked on Bella's homepage. Sure enough, there was a new update: "Little Dumpling went to sleep early. One word of loneliness and Mr. S flew back to my side immediately. Tonight I'll take him down with this lingerie." The picture was Bella in a sexy nightdress. I turned off my phone, not a shred of expectation left for Ethan. I packed my things and went to bed early. Early the next morning, I printed out the divorce agreement sent by the lawyer, signed it and placed it on the table, along with all the evidence I had collected, and left without looking back. By the time Ethan saw these, I was already on a plane abroad. All I left for Ethan was that divorce agreement and my message: "Ethan Sterling, let's divorce."
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