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Divorced by the Billionaire, I Came Back With His ‘Heir’
I was born in shame—my mother was a bar hostess, my father a john who paid for her services. To claw my way into high society, I abandoned the man I'd loved for seven years. And what did I get in re...
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第1章
I was born in shame—my mother was a bar hostess, my father a john who paid for her services. To claw my way into high society, I abandoned the man I'd loved for seven years. And what did I get in return? A husband who sneered that I was nothing but a hen that couldn't lay eggs.
In the end, Colin Farley threw me away like garbage, dumping me at a remote convent in the mountains.
Penniless. Broken. Sick from years of failed treatments.
But I wasn't ready to accept my fate. Not yet.
So I found my first love again. Together, we hatched a plan to seize the Farley family's billion-dollar fortune.
1.
Colin had been obsessed with having an heir. He'd forced me through round after round of IVF, each cycle more brutal than the last.
The retrieval needle would pierce through the skin at my waist, driving deep into my ovaries. Every time, it felt like my body was being hollowed out, piece by piece.
I'd curl up on the bed afterward, trembling, tears streaming down my face. "Colin, please. It hurts so much. Can we stop? Just this once?"
He'd watch the doctors pin me down, his expression carved from ice. "Don't play games with me. I married you for one reason—to continue my bloodline. If you can't handle this much, what use are you?"
As expected, the pregnancy failed again.
The final diagnosis came back: my uterus had developed a severe immunological rejection of Colin's sperm. My body was literally fighting against carrying his child.
That was all he needed to hear.
He shoved divorce papers in front of me, citing my infertility as grounds. He refused to give me a single cent in the settlement, claiming I hadn't earned it. No children, no claim to the Farley fortune—those were his exact words.
Then he drove me five hundred miles from Ashford to the Cedar Ridge Mountains and deposited me at a convent like an unwanted package.
I was cast out with nothing. No money. No belongings. Just a body riddled with complications from the immune reactions, aching in ways I couldn't even name.
When I screamed at the heavens, the heavens didn't answer. When I begged the earth, the earth stayed silent.
I'd given up everything to marry Colin Farley. Including Darren—the man I'd been with for seven years.
I was a left-behind child, raised by my grandmother while my mother chased her own life in the city. When my grandmother died, my mother followed not long after.
I'd pinned all my hopes on marriage. It was supposed to be the light that would guide the rest of my life.
Instead, Colin Farley shoved me into darkness with his own two hands.
On the first morning of the new year, the sky was clear.
Melting snow dripped from icicles on the eaves, landing on the stone steps below.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Footsteps. Familiar ones, growing closer.
I pushed open the wooden door of my room.
There he was—Darren Gilbert, standing beneath a pine tree, wearing a teal puffer jacket.
That jacket. I'd given it to him when we were still in college.
Ten years had passed. The cuffs were frayed now, the color faded almost to white. But stretched across his broad chest and athletic frame, it somehow made him look like a wandering martial hero from an old story.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, bewildered.
"I heard you got divorced." His voice was low, rough. "I drove through the night to get here."
My nose stung. Tears spilled over before I could stop them.
"Can we... can we start over?"
"I got married last month."
The words hung between us, bitter as medicine.
"Then why did you come?"
"If I didn't come—" He paused, something unreadable flickering in his eyes. "—who else would?"
I'd loved him. God, I'd loved him.
But he was a medical student back then, and even after years of working, he was still consistently broke. When my mother needed surgery, he'd worried himself sick—literally turned his hair gray with stress—but couldn't scrape together enough money to help.
So I accepted Colin Farley's proposal instead. The Farleys were the wealthiest family in the state capital. If there was one thing they never ran short of, it was money.
On my wedding day, Darren was still at the hospital, keeping vigil at my mother's bedside.
She died in the ICU shortly after.
After that, Darren left for Crown City to pursue advanced training. We lost touch completely.
I'd grown up in my grandmother's house in the countryside. Only after she passed did my mother finally bring me to the city for middle school.
My mother worked at a bar. She cycled through boyfriends like she was changing clothes, but she never married any of them. She didn't even know who my father was.
I hated living with her. So I stayed in the school dormitory during the week, and on weekends, I haunted the internet cafés instead of going home—sometimes staying out all night, anything to avoid that cramped apartment and the parade of strange men.
第2章
That was how I met Darren Gilbert—a guy who pulled all-nighters gaming instead of studying.
We were two peas in a dysfunctional pod, clawing our way through high school together until we landed at the same university.
Just when I thought I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, my mother collapsed.
She'd spent her whole life fighting for a future, only to lose to reality itself.
Treating her syphilis drained every cent she had.
After graduation, I became a nurse at a hospital in the state capital. The pay was pitiful.
Rent. A sick mother. A boyfriend in grad school. The math never worked.
That's when I learned to squeeze every penny—and cut every corner.
A nurse's salary couldn't cover my expenses, but fortunately, I found ways to supplement it. Gray areas, let's call them.
Around that time, the hospital established the Outreach Office, and the message from the top was clear: every employee should develop an awareness of generating revenue from patients.
My awareness developed fast.
I referred two patients with serious conditions to Director Hanley, steering them toward purchasing surgical equipment through our hospital. They spent hundreds of thousands more than they needed to.
The hospital rewarded me with three thousand dollars in cash. Incentive pay, they called it.
Once I tasted that sweetness, I couldn't stop. Money became the only thing I saw.
I had an eye for opportunity—predatory, some might say. At a medical supplies demo, I sniffed out a chance and made my move on a young equipment vendor desperate to break into the market.
I leveraged my subtle influence over which supplies got "selected" for our department, extending an olive branch to the supplier.
My job was to smooth things over internally—making sure their products got used. A lot.
Their job was to cover things up externally—disguising kickbacks as "marketing fees" and "academic conference stipends."
Through deal after deal, banquet after banquet, I became Director Hanley's golden girl.
He told the hospital director he wanted to poach me for the Outreach Office. Promised I'd own a house and a car within a year.
I was ready to make the leap—until an unexpected wrinkle derailed everything.
A new patient checked into the hospice ward. An elderly woman requiring end-of-life care.
Every department buzzed with whispers about her extraordinary identity.
When I learned she was Molly Farley, chairwoman of the Farley Group, my heart nearly burst through my chest. My hands trembled with barely contained excitement.
I threw myself into providing impeccable care for Mrs. Farley. Attentive. Devoted. Irreplaceable.
Then one day, Mrs. Farley ordered her only son to propose to me.
Director Hanley looked at me like I'd sprouted wings.
The Farley Group was a privately held empire worth billions.
Marrying into that family? It was my chance to rewrite my fate entirely.
What I couldn't have predicted was that three years later, Colin Farley would throw me away like a worn-out shoe.
Darren's wife was named Celine Clark.
Her face was peppered with freckles, and her tongue dripped acid.
"I'm only staying a few days," I said politely. "I'll move out as soon as I find a place."
She rolled her eyes, sizing me up like a rival.
Darren took my hand in his. "You're in my home now. Stay as long as you want."
Celine's expression curdled. She clutched her stomach with theatrical distress. "Ow—your son just kicked me!"
Darren didn't even blink. "At ten weeks, a fetus is about four to five centimeters long. Weighs less than five grams. The legs have barely formed—a few millimeters at most." His voice was clinical, detached. "If you think he's kicking you, it's definitely your imagination."
"Then why does it feel like there's pressure in my stomach?"
"Sounds like you need to fart."
Celine's eyes rimmed red, her lips pressing into a thin, wounded line.
And me? I felt an inexplicable ripple of satisfaction.
"Let me cook for you," I offered, eager to prove my usefulness.
Darren's lips curved into a half-smile. "Then we're in for a treat."
第3章
The dining table was set with several dishes I'd prepared myself.
Celine sat across from me, her expression frigid.
Darren ate with exaggerated care, like a child who knew he'd done something wrong, trying not to make a single sound as he chewed.
I let the tip of my foot brush against his calf under the table. He flinched so hard his whole body trembled.
"What's wrong with you?" Celine asked, concern creeping into her voice.
"I think he caught a chill," I said breezily. "A little liquor should warm him up."
I reached to the top of the cabinet and pulled down a half-empty bottle of baijiu, pouring three glasses before anyone could object.
"I didn't know we had liquor in the house." Celine's brows drew together, irritation sharpening her features.
Darren glanced at me, then back at her. "She's pregnant. She shouldn't even smell alcohol."
I raised my glass as if I hadn't heard, tilting it toward Darren in invitation.
"Why don't you just go be with her, then?"
Celine slammed her palm on the table and shot to her feet. In one fluid motion, she grabbed her glass and hurled the liquor into Darren's face, then stormed out, the door crashing shut behind her.
Darren shook the liquid from his hair, droplets scattering across the tablecloth. He looked at me and forced a smile.
"Aren't you going to chase her?" I asked, not bothering to hide my amusement.
"She'll come back once she's cooled down."
The small victory put me in a good mood. I drank more than I should have, and before I knew it, the world had gone soft at the edges. I drifted off on the couch.
When I woke the next morning, Darren was lying beside me.
It was obvious what had happened. He'd taken advantage of me again.
We'd been comrades-in-arms for years, and I was living under his roof now—a guest with no ground to stand on. I had no right to be angry. So I pretended I'd simply overslept, sparing us both the awkwardness.
He didn't offer any explanation either. Just got dressed and left.
That evening at eight, the doorbell rang. I assumed Darren had come back and rushed to answer it, only to find a delivery driver standing there with takeout containers.
The receipt had a note scrawled on it: Staying at my mother-in-law's for a few days. Gotta smooth things over with the wife.
After that, Darren had meals delivered to me three times a day. Every single day.
A little over a month later, my period didn't come.
I dug out a pregnancy test. Two lines. Positive.
I'd been married to Colin for three years without getting pregnant—which was exactly why he'd been using emotional warfare to push me toward divorce.
The doctors had explained it wasn't that I couldn't conceive. My body was simply... particular. My ovaries rejected my husband's sperm like a foreign invader.
I couldn't carry Colin Farley's child. But apparently, I could carry someone else's.
Colin had two mistresses stashed away somewhere, and he was planning to have one of them serve as a surrogate to produce his heir.
If I let his scheme succeed, I'd be left with nothing.
We were talking about a fortune worth billions. Did he really think I'd just walk away from that?
I called Colin immediately and told him I was pregnant too.
"Ha! Really?" He laughed, the sound dripping with mockery. "Whose kid is it?"
"Who else's could it be but yours?"
I'd originally planned to throw it in his face—to let him know that all those years of "failure" weren't my fault. He was the one shooting blanks.
But the words shifted on my tongue, and I changed my mind.
Who cared who the father was? If this child came from my body, it was my child.
And if one little lie could make this baby the heir to a billion-dollar empire? Why wouldn't I tell it?
Like Gao Qiqiang said in that show: The bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish.
That afternoon, the Farley family's driver arrived in a stretched Cadillac to bring me back to the estate.
Colin stood by the fountain, cradling nine hundred and ninety roses, a smile plastered across his face like he'd never done a thing wrong.
"Don't be upset anymore. Come on, smile for me."
The shamelessness was breathtaking.
I lifted my chin and strode into the villa, reclaiming the confidence of the lady of the house.
That evening, Colin arranged an extravagant family dinner.
I wore a stunning evening gown, ready to take my seat at the head of the table—only to have the new housekeeper step in front of me.
"Ma'am," she said, her voice polite but firm, "you can't sit there."
第4章
My brow furrowed as the realization hit me—Colin had already taken new lovers.
"Why is there another 'Number Three'?"
A towering beauty with a distinct Southern drawl sauntered past me, her white strapless dress clinging to her willowy frame.
She wore flat sandals, yet still stood half a head taller than me in my heels.
"Well, hello there, supermodel!"
"Don't be ridiculous—I'm one hundred percent Chinese. My name is Celia Whitney, but you can call me May. Or 'Number Two,' if you prefer."
Celia Whitney. Twenty-two years old.
Six-foot-three, with a lean, angular build and eyes that held something feral.
Her cropped hair was dyed a striking silvery-gray, giving her an almost ethereal edge.
The tongue piercing caught the light when she spoke, slurring her words just slightly.
"Weren't you a pageant queen?" I said, not bothering to soften my tone. "Standards must have really slipped."
"So the boss already told you about me." She shrugged, unbothered. "Yeah, I was Miss Something-or-Other. But these days I'm a livestreamer. Gotta push boundaries to pay the bills, you know?"
I let my distaste show. "You couldn't just do talent streams? Why go gray-market?"
May scoffed at my naivety. "Money talks, sweetheart. Don't lecture me about morals or contracts—I don't speak that language. My advice? Do what I do. Be a good little broodmare and keep your mouth shut."
I studied the woman before me—all curves, no substance—and felt an unexpected wave of relief wash over me.
At least I know what I'm dealing with.
"Ahem—" The new housekeeper cleared her throat pointedly. "The First Lady has arrived."
Colin's new wife was named Freya Fox.
A graduate student at the Academy of Arts.
Freya swept in wearing a crimson gown that pooled at her feet, crystal heels clicking against the marble. Her expression was glacial, as if everyone in the room owed her money.
"Number One, Number Two, Number Three—you're all here! Excellent." Colin strode to the head of the table, pride radiating from every pore. "Please, take your seats. I have an announcement."
"Wait—why are they Number One and Two while I'm the mistress?" I protested, unable to keep the indignation from my voice.
"Because they're both carrying boys." Colin's smile was insufferably smug. "Freya is three months along. May is at two months. You? One month—and we don't even know the gender yet. The child's age determines the mother's rank. Simple as that."
Of course.
A cold dread settled in my stomach.
As a medical student, I knew exactly how precise modern testing had become.
Around seven weeks, fetal DNA could be detected in the mother's blood, providing an early indicator of sex.
By sixteen to twenty weeks, an ultrasound could confirm it with near-certainty.
Both Freya and May had already passed two rounds of testing. The doctors were confident: boys, both of them.
Colin pointed directly at me, his finger hovering inches from my nose.
"Tomorrow, the butler will take you to the hospital for an examination. We need to confirm the fetus is healthy."
"I'm only one month pregnant! You can't determine gender this early!"
My heart hammered against my ribs.
What if this baby is Darren's?
The fear was suffocating. Yes, I'd been with both Colin and Darren—but my body had always rejected Colin's attempts. Three years of trying, and nothing had ever taken.
The odds that our final encounter had somehow succeeded?
Almost zero.
Colin's smile didn't waver.
"I already have two sons confirmed. A little princess would make things perfect, actually. So I don't particularly care whether you're carrying a boy or a girl."
His eyes hardened.
"But I do need to confirm that it's mine."
"You want me to take a DNA test?" I stared at him, incredulous.
"Shouldn't I be concerned about whether my wife's been making a fool of me?" Colin's eyes bored into mine, unblinking.