Episode 1

Dion fell silent for a moment after Jasmine’s office door swung wide open. A man, roughly 28 years old, was casually seated on the sofa next to his wife, his left arm draped over Jasmine’s shoulder as if whispering something into her ear.

The man was dressed in a light brown Armani Collection ensemble, donned with matching brown dress shoes. His attire appeared impeccably coordinated.

Circling his wrist was a luxurious Bremont watch, seemingly valued at around $5,000.

Adorning his ring finger was a sizable, well-crafted ring, resembling the V I C 4141, estimated to cost between 20 to 22 million or more.

"Jasmine, what are you doing? Who is this man?" Dion asked in a panic.

"Hey... hey... hey... What do you think you're doing? How dare you storm into this room. Get out!" the well-dressed man thundered back angrily.

"And who might you be?"

"Who am I? Damn it! Jasmine and I were just enjoying ourselves, and then you come barging in," he added scornfully.

"Dion! Good timing. Meet Mr. Brian, my future husband. Once we're divorced, I'll marry him," Jasmine interjected confidently, showing no sign of remorse.

"When did I ever say I'd divorce you? Never!" Dion retorted, glancing over at Mr. Brian.

"Get out of my wife's room! She is lawfully mine. How dare you disturb her," Dion argued with clenched fists, taking steps toward the man who was upsetting his wife.

Slap!

Suddenly, the sound of a slap echoed sharply in the room, accompanied by a grimacing face trying to bear the pain.

Indeed, Dion had been slapped by his own wife, in front of a man who deserved no respect. He was shocked that Jasmine could do this for someone else.

"You lowlife scum, you don't deserve to raise a hand to Mr. Brian!"

"Now leave! We'll sort this out at home. Go!" Jasmine commanded harshly, shoving him, causing him to stumble backward, and then...

Splash!

A glass of red wine was poured over Dion's head, drenching his hair and partially soaking his clothes.

Upon absorbing the wine, Dion rose and approached Mr. Brian, grabbed his clothes firmly, and suddenly...

Thud!

The sound of a raw punch resonated clearly, striking Mr. Brian squarely in the face, unexpected by him, with a trickle of fresh blood seeping from his mouth.

Mr. Brian, wincing in pain, attempted a retaliatory strike, reaching for Dion's shabby clothing, but Dion dodged and once again delivered a solid punch to Mr. Brian's stomach, causing him to double over and kneel on the floor.

"Dion! What have you done? Don't you realize, Mr. Brian is a manager at Birawa Group?"

"With just a word from him, you could be finished. Get down on your knees and apologize to him!" Jasmine screamed in fear.

"Pah!"

"This bastard doesn't deserve any respect, and...

Thud!

"Argh!"

Once more, Dion assaulted Mr. Brian, kicking his body so fiercely he crashed into a glass table behind him, shattering it.

"How dare you strike me? Don't you know who I am?"

"I have power at Birawa Group! You will pay for this!" he yelled, trying to rise from the floor.

"Mr. Brian! Please forgive my foolish husband. I promise, I'll divorce him for you," Jasmine pleaded to Mr. Brian, even more frightened.

Meanwhile, Dion's fury soared, observing how his wife lavished attention on another man, something he had never received during their year of marriage.

"Jasmine! How could you! I am your husband, show me some respect," Dion shouted angrily.

"Husband? Respect?"

"When did you start claiming to be a husband, when you still mooch off my family, working just to eat at my house. That's what you call a husband?"

"What have I gained from marrying you? Nothing but mockery and scorn from people and my own family!"

"Do you, a wretched loser and parasite, deserve to be called a husband?"

"You're better described as a guard dog, living off scraps thrown away. You are a dog, get it?"

"Now get out of here! I'm sick of looking at your dog-like face," Jasmine said emotionally, unleashing her frustration as she pointed fingers at Dion.

Her anger was further fueled by Dion's provocation of Mr. Brian and the audacity to strike him, jeopardizing her chance to gain Mr. Brian's favor because of Dion's rough treatment.

"Puh!" Jasmine spat toward Dion, hitting his face directly.

For a moment, Dion was in disbelief. His cherished wife, whom he truly loved and always protected, had performed such a disgraceful act.

With feelings of disgust and humiliation, Dion wiped away Jasmine's spit with his sleeve before saying...

"Fine. I'll leave and not interfere with your fun any longer. But remember! You'll regret this humiliation!"

"Regret? Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"You, a vagrant, dare talk of regret to a daughter of the Wolf family. Dream on," Jasmine declared, laughing mockingly. She then approached Mr. Brian, hugged him, and started to dust off his expensive garb.

Viewing this scene, deep down, Dion felt an urge to throw another punch at both Mr. Brian and Jasmine.

Yet he chose to walk away from the room, heart aching profoundly. The food he had been carrying all along, he threw into a nearby waste basket.

Dejectedly, Dion left the office grounds where his wife worked, without a clue as to where he was headed.

His thoughts and focus scattered, he accidentally bumped into a slender figure passing by, and...

Crash!

"Aaahhh," a young woman's voice exclaimed as her body was struck by Dion, spreading the contents of her folder across the asphalt.

"Hey... watch out! Why are you walking around in a daze?" a soft voice reproached Dion once she regained composure.

Dion came back to his senses and recognized the familiar face from their college days.

"Emily!" he greeted warmly, removing the cap that was perched on his head.

"Dion! So it is you? What are you doing here? Do you work at Birawa Group too?" Emily bombarded him with questions, taken aback.

"I'm sorry for bumping into you earlier. It was an accident," Dion replied, bypassing Emily's earlier questions.

"Never mind. I wasn't paying attention either. Anyway, what are you doing at this Birawa Group subsidiary?"

"Nothing! I just wanted to deliver lunch to my wife." He answered dispiritedly and despondently.

"You're married?" Emily probed curiously.

"Yes! I've been donning the title of husband for a year now, to a woman from the Wolf family," he revealed.

"Why didn't you invite me? Or at least your other friends?" Emily continued, failing to grasp the situation.

"Let's drop it. Better not to talk about it anymore," Dion cut off, lacking enthusiasm.

Emily, as an astute woman, sensed that there was something off about Dion's story but chose to steer the conversation in a different direction to dispel the awkwardness.

"Oh, Dion. What have you been up to since graduating?"

"After graduation, it's like our friends lost touch with you. What really happened?" Emily inquired, lightening the mood.

"It's a long story," Dion replied briefly.

"Then tell it! I happen to be free right now. I've just lost my job after being fired by manager Jasmine for uncovering embezzlement at Birawa Group."

"What! You got fired for exposing embezzlement by your manager?"

"Know this! The manager Jasmine you just mentioned is my wife, and she kicked me out of there just now," Dion interjected with emotion.

"Oh, I apologize. I didn't mean to insult her. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Right now, I'm indeed her husband, but soon I'll be her ex."

"What do you mean? Isn't Miss Jasmine beautiful? Why would you want to be her ex?" Emily asked, not understanding.

"Again, it's a long tale. I can't tell it all here."

"Then let's go to the bamboo cafe just a short distance from here."

"Are you sure you want to take me there?" queried Dion incredulously.

"Why not? Don't you want to?" Emily responded by returning the question.

"It's not that. I'm just surprised at how kind you are to me, even knowing my situation," Dion answered nervously.

"To me, you were, are, and always will be one of my best friends!" Emily declared.

"I still remember when you bravely saved me from the wrongdoings of our college mates back then."

"Without you, who knows what might have happened to me," Emily recalled sadly.

"Come on! Are you coming or not?"

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