The Betrayed Affair

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After showering, I stepped barefoot onto the smart scale in our house.

A chime rang out:

Congratulations, Mindy, mid-pregnancy, baby is 1.5 kg!

I was stunned. I was pregnant? How did I not know?

Excited, I grabbed my phone and immediately called my husband:

What's wrong with the scale? Am I pregnant?

There was a brief second of silence on the other end, then his usual gentle chuckle:

"Skylar, it's just a scale, the data's wrong. Are you overly sensitive because you haven't conceived yet?"

I hung up, then connected via Bluetooth.

In the scale's data log, I saw three months of continuous weight gain.

Grabbing my car keys, I drove straight to Mindys university.

Before confronting Mindy, I needed to confirm my suspicions.

In the scale's app, there was a heart icon every two weeks, which I assumed marked a prenatal check-up.

Based on the pattern, today was a check-up day!

I parked my car outside the private hospital.

The scent of disinfectant hung heavy in the obstetrics and gynecology corridor.

A few minutes later, a girl in a white cotton dress walked out of the consulting room, head down.

Long hair reaching her waist, no makeup on her faceexactly the pure, innocent look my husband, Alex, always favored.

The moment she looked up, I confirmed it.

It was Mindy, the underprivileged student my husband and I had been sponsoring.

When she saw me, her eyes clearly flickered with panic for a moment, but she quickly composed herself, patting her belly and forcing a shy smile:

"Skylar? What a coincidence, are you here for an appointment too?"

"Yes, a prenatal check-up."

"My scale at home says I'm pregnant, so I came to see if it's true."

I got straight to the point,

"And you? A prenatal check-up too? Your belly looks about four or five months along?"

"N-no!"

She waved her hands frantically,

"I I just gained weight"

"I just came for a routine physical yes, a physical!"

She stammered through her explanation, full of holes.

If not for the smart scale's cold "mid-pregnancy" announcement, I might have actually believed her.

My gaze fell on her tightly clutched abdomen.

She trembled with fright, instinctively taking a step back.

But I smiled, stepping closer, my voice gentle:

"Don't be nervous, plenty of people get pregnant before marriage, there's nothing to be ashamed of."

"If you really are pregnant, just make the man marry you. Have Alex talk to him; let's see if he dares to shirk responsibility."

Mindys face instantly paled, her lips trembling as she bolted.

I didn't watch her humiliated retreat, instead turning to make a call.

"Get me Mindys medical report."

Within ten minutes, my phone vibrated in my pocket.

It was a message from my best friend, Chloe.

An image: Mindys prenatal check-up report.

A quick glance confirmed it was indeed mid-pregnancy.

In the emergency contact section, two names stood out.

Alex.

Chloe was silent for a few seconds, dropping her usual playful tone:

"Is it his?"

I shook my head, a bitter smile on my face:

"No proof yet"

Back home, before I even had a chance to change my shoes, my phone screen lit up.

It was a notification from Mindy's social media.

A photo of a pregnant belly, the background my carefully chosen living room sofa, her wearing my loungewear, intimately leaning on a cushion Id bought, with the caption:

"Baby's new home, I love it."

The location: the address of my newly renovated villa.

I forced myself to calm down and stormed into Alexs study.

Following a woman's intuition, I found his old phone tucked into a hidden compartment on the top shelf of the bookshelf.

The lock screen was a photo of me, and the password was still my birthday.

The screen lit up, and I tapped on the profile picture; it was a new account.

The profile picture showed a slender hand stroking a woman's pregnant belly.

A chill ran through me.

The plain silver band on that hands ring finger was one I had designed myself ten years ago.

The contact list contained only Mindy.

I opened the chat, and their love story unfolded before my eyes.

The timeline wasn't long, starting from when I was temporarily transferred out of town six months ago.

The earliest message was from last Christmas, sent by Mindy:

"Alex, Merry Christmas, the gift I want to give you is myself."

Alex hadn't replied to that message, but I remembered he used the excuse of working overtime that night and didn't come home.

After a few innocuous holiday greetings, the messages grew increasingly vulgar.

"Your waist is so soft."

"You were amazing last night, you utterly captivated me."

Those disgusting words turned my stomach.

On our wedding anniversary, he video-called me until midnight.

But after hanging up, he immediately went to find Mindy, hiking with her up a mountain to watch the sunrise.

Mindy would occasionally feign innocence, asking:

"Will Skylar be angry?"

Alex's reply was cold and heartless:

"Our private world doesn't include her."

I trembled as I opened the album of that secondary account; it was filled with Mindy.

They kissed at sunset, their maternity photos, their dreams of a beautiful life as a family of three

I was shaking with rage, almost crushing the phone.

Just then, my own phone received a picture of steamed dumplings from Alex, and immediately afterwards, the phone rang.

"Skylar, are you home yet?"

"I queued for half an hour in the North End to get your favorite dumplings. I was just about to bring them over, but something urgent came up at the company"

I sneered inwardly, looking at the message Mindy had just sent on the old phone:

"Honey, the hotel room is ready, I'm waiting for you in my new sexy lingerie~"

Unsurprisingly, those dumplings would soon appear before Mindy.

I regulated my breathing:

"Okay, you go take care of it."

I copied all the chat logs and videos from Alexs old phone.

When Alex rushed home, I was sitting in the living room.

Seeing the scene, the gentle smile on his face froze for a moment, but he still walked over as usual, trying to embrace me:

"Skylar, what's wrong?"

I sidestepped, avoiding him, and threw the printed prenatal report onto the coffee table in front of him.

A flicker of panic crossed his eyes, yet he still feigned innocence:

"Skylar, why did you actually go to the hospital for a check-up?"

I couldnt hold back anymore.

"Alex, look closely at the name on thereit's Mindy, not Skylar! What do you have to say for yourself?"

He still brazenly lied.

"Mindy? Mindys pregnant? How would I know you know these young university students getting pregnant so easily"

"But darling, what does this have to do with me? You're not suspecting me, are you I'm innocent"

I looked at the man before me, a terrible actor, and couldn't understand how I had loved him for so many years.

"Darling, I'll go find Mindy right now and have her clarify everything to your face."

Alex calmly took out his phone and dialed Mindy's number.

Not long after, the doorbell rang.

Alex pulled in a delicate figure from outside, it was Mindy.

She cowered, timidly looking at me, no makeup on her face, appearing clean and innocent.

"Alex Am I here at a bad time? Skylar, please don't misunderstand Alex, it's all my fault"

"Do you have a say here?"

I sharply snapped.

Mindy flinched, her body swaying, and she fell straight to the ground.

I watched her with cold eyes, not moving an inch.

Alex, however, rushed forward, cradling Mindy protectively in his arms, then turned to me and roared:

"Skylar! Why did you push her! She's carrying a child!"

Before I could speak, a commotion erupted outside the door.

"What child? Who has a child of the Chen family?"

A middle-aged couple, plainly dressed but with sharp eyes, pushed their way in. It was Alexs parents.

They had come to deliver local specialties to Alex.

As soon as Alexs parents entered, they saw Alex embracing Mindy.

His mother glared fiercely at Mindy, then charged forward, ready to strike her:

"You shameless hussy! How dare you seduce my son!"

Alex quickly shielded Mindy:

"Mom! What are you doing! Mindy is the daughter of Mrs. Davis from the general store at the village entrance!"

At these words, Alexs parents' attitude did a complete 180-degree turn.

His mother stopped her tirade, beaming with joy,

"Oh, it's Mrs. Davis's girl, let me see, you've grown so big?"

She scrutinized Mindy's belly,

"Pregnant? That's wonderful! Where are you living now? I say, don't live anywhere else, just stay here in our villa with a nanny, we'll make sure you're perfectly comfortable."

Alex adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses, and following his mother's lead, turned to me:

"From today onwards, Mindy will live here to rest during her pregnancy. Give her the master bedroom; you can go to the guest room for now."

His tone was not a discussion, but a decree.

Before I could object, he helped Mindy up and walked out, leaving me alone in the living room.

The next morning, Mindy sauntered downstairs wearing my favorite silk bathrobe.

She was wearing my usual perfume, a unique scent that Alex and I had custom-blended in France during our courtship. There was only one of its kind in the world.

I sat at the dining table, coldly watching her take a seat opposite me.

"How did you sleep last night, sister?"

Mindy deliberately rested her wrist on the table, revealing a Patek Philippe watch, smiling with feigned innocence.

She was an underprivileged student; she couldnt possibly afford it.

Undoubtedly, the watch was a gift from Alex, and she was flaunting it to me.

I ignored her, looking down at my porridge.

She seemed unfazed, picking up a bowl of bird's nest soup and stirring it gently with a spoon.

"Alex is so good to me. He knows I have morning sickness and no appetite, so he even got up in the middle of the night to make me bird's nest soup, saying it's good for the baby."

"Sister, would you like to try some?"

"Crash!"

I couldn't take it anymore, and furiously smashed the bowl of bird's nest soup on the floor.

"Ah!"

Mindy shrieked, perfectly dodging into Alex's arms as he walked in, crying, her face a tear-streaked mess.

"Alex, I'm so scared, is Skylar going crazy?"

Alex immediately shielded the "startled" Mindy behind him, his eyes burning with anger as he looked at me:

"Skylar, look at yourself. What have you become?"

"Mindy is pregnant, she's from my hometown, and she's an underprivileged student we both sponsored. Why are you losing your temper with her?"

I couldn't stand it anymore. I wasn't going to play Alexs game any longer.

"I know Mindy is carrying your child."

Alex paused for a moment, then laughed.

"Skylar, haven't you always wanted a child?"

The smile on his lips turned cruel.

"I got Mindy to be your surrogate, shouldn't you thank me?"

"Thank you?"

I trembled with rage.

"Alex, you want me to thank you for getting your mistress to have a child for me?"

My mother-in-law, who had just arrived with chicken soup early that morning, suddenly appeared.

"Alex, are you saying Mindy is carrying your child?"

Alex nodded.

My mother-in-law's eyes suddenly lit up, and she burst into laughter.

"Heaven has eyes! Our Chen family finally has an heir!"

She walked up to me, pointed at my nose, and cursed me furiously:

"You barren hen! Our Chen family has had only one heir per generation, and after three years of marriage with you, there's been no sign of a baby! Now you want to harm my precious grandchild! What are your intentions?!"

Alexs father also chimed in:

"Skylar, it's your good fortune that our Alex married you. If you can't have children yourself, shouldn't he be allowed to find someone who can? Don't be so overbearing!"

That whole family, they epitomized shamelessness.

"Sister, don't be angry,"

Mindy poked her head out from behind Alex, stroking her belly.

"Didn't the doctor say you weren't well and it would be hard for you to conceive? Alex is doing this for your own good too."

I was shaking with rage at this twisted scene, pointing at them, unable to speak. Suddenly, my vision went black, and I slowly collapsed.

When I woke up, I saw that my assistant had called me hundreds of times.

While I was unconscious, Alex had urgently convened a board meeting of the Forrester Group, proposing to remove me from my position.

I floored the accelerator, crashing through the boardroom doors ten minutes later.

Alex froze when he saw me, but quickly replaced it with a look of concern.

"Skylar, it's cold, don't catch a chill."

I ignored him, addressing everyone:

"Who wants to remove me? I don't agree!"

A cold laugh came from among the board members, it was my stepmother, Victoria.

"Skylar, your mental state has been deteriorating lately. You're constantly throwing tantrums and smashing things. You're simply not fit to hold a board position."

I suddenly remembered a few months ago, when I accidentally overheard them secretly talking in the garden.

Victoria handed Alex a card, both of them acting furtively.

He had then dismissed it as "pocket money" from my stepmother, a gesture from an elder.

It turned out they had already colluded.

Alexs voice suddenly came through the microphone:

"Everyone, please settle down. I have a video I'd like to show you all, of my wife, Skylar's, recent true condition."

The giant screen behind him lit up, showing me.

I was screaming hysterically in the living room, my face contorted, violently smashing the bowl of bird's nest soup on the floor.

The video was meticulously edited, only showing my most uncontrolled moments, perfectly portraying me as a deranged lunatic.

The room erupted in gasps.

Victoria opportunely pulled out a handkerchief and began to sob quietly.

I coldly watched Alex on the stage.

He looked back at me, his eyes filled with feigned heartbreak.

He was truly a good actor.

As soon as the video finished, a man in a white lab coat appeared in the conference room.

"I am Dr. Lewis, head of the Provincial Mental Hospital,"

"According to my diagnosis, Ms. Forrester is experiencing an acute manic episode of bipolar disorder, with severe violent tendencies, and must be immediately placed in isolation for treatment!"

Alex's tears instantly welled up:

"My wife's mental state has been extremely unstable recently due to personal family reasons, and it has severely impacted the company's normal operations."

"To protect our collective hard work, I propose that Ms. Forrester's chairman position be temporarily suspended, and I be granted full authority to manage the subsequent crisis!"

"Uncles and aunts, for Skylar's sake, and for everyone's safety, I have no choice but to do this!"

No sooner had his words fallen than several of his cronies on the board immediately voiced their agreement.

"Mr. Chen is right, the top priority is to stabilize the situation!"

"Ms. Forrester should take care of her personal affairs first; her health is paramount."

The conference room door was once again flung open, and blinding flashlights instantly engulfed me.

A group of reporters rushed in.

Alexs face was etched with a grief I had never seen before.

"To all media friends, I am deeply pained."

He pushed me away, leading the reporters into the room.

"My wife she has developed some mental issues because she hasn't been able to have children."

Several reporters' recording pens appeared before me.

"Ms. Forrester, have you truly developed a mental illness due to infertility?"

"Mr. Chen said you've been smashing things at home, even becoming violent towards him, is that true?"

"Can shareholders really trust the Forrester Group to a mentally ill person?"

Before I could refute, Alex stepped forward and grabbed my wrist.

He looked at the camera, his eyes red-rimmed:

"Skylar, don't be afraid. I'll take you to the best hospital for treatment right away."

His performance was flawless, like a perfect husband utterly heartbroken for his wife.

And I, wearing only a thin nightgown, my hair disheveled, my face ashen.

He roughly dragged me, shoving me into a car from the mental institution.