Seven Years Reduced to Data

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At the gala, Xavier ?Gibson publicly announced we were getting married. The entire hall erupted in applause.

But what I didn't expect was that before the event even ended, I'd find myself standing outside the lounge door, staring at the projection screen on the wall.

On the screen was a massive Excel spreadsheet.

Behind dozens of candidate names were densely packed rating categories: housekeeping ability, bedroom endurance...

In the baseline column, my name was written prominently: Jade Monroe.

"Relationships are like companies," he said, casually swirling his wine. "You have to cut the underperformers."

So seven years of companionship meant nothing more to him than an asset with terrible returns.

I didn't burst through the door to confront him. Instead, I turned and walked to the end of the hallway, pulled out my phone, and sent a text to a number at the bottom of my contacts.

"I'm ready to honor the terms from ten years ago."

Three seconds later, came the reply. "Finally giving up on that scumbag? Let's register our marriage tomorrow then."

Jade Monroe's POV

Xavier had just publicly announced our engagement on stage, with everyone applauding and offering congratulations.

But what I didn't expect was that before the gala even ended, I'd overhear him at the lounge door, discussing how to dump me.

The door wasn't fully closed. I'd come to bring him tea, only to catch sight of the projection screen on the wall.

Displayed on it was a massive Excel spreadsheet.

"Xavier, is this really how you choose a wife?"

The voice of his business partner, Mr. Davis, drifted out with a hint of mockery.

"You've literally turned wife selection into a competitive hiring process."

I stopped in my tracks and peered through the gap in the door.

A complex Excel spreadsheet was projected on the wall.

The spreadsheet listed dozens of names, each followed by densely packed rating categories: housekeeping ability, social etiquette, and even a brazenly explicit "bedroom endurance level."

Mr. Davis held a cigarette between his fingers, pointing at the data analysis on screen.

"Look at this Candidate No.19, Amber Thomson, right? Her scores in emotional support provision and bedroom compatibility completely crush the baseline."

In the baseline column, my name was written clearly:

Jade Monroe.

Mr. Davis exhaled a smoke ring, his tone becoming hesitant.

"But Jade's been with you since the startup days. If you just fire her and promote someone new, won't that damage the company's image? After all, people are watching."

Two seconds of silence inside the room.

Xavier sat in the main seat on the sofa, swirling half a glass of red wine, his face showing not a trace of intoxication.

He glanced up at the data on screen, his eyes cold.

"Relationships are like companies-both need to eliminate underperformers to maintain vitality."

He tilted his head back and took a sip of wine.

"Jade's cost-efficiency ratio is too low now."

"This feels like you fed Amber the test questions, doesn't it? Her scores just barely beat Jade's across the board. That's pretty cruel to Jade."

In the VIP lounge, the partner's voice carried a hint of hesitation.

Xavier's tone was casual.

"There's still two months left in the probationary period. If Jade can accept a pay cut and demotion, she can stay. She's a veteran employee after all. But that depends on whether she can tolerate Amber's presence. Otherwise, she'll have to go."

Standing outside the door, the hot tea spilled from my hands.

I didn't feel the pain, only felt like a complete joke.

Seven years of companionship, selling my house to help fund his startup-in his eyes, I was just an employee with poor returns.

Since I was being liquidated as a bad asset, I might as well proactively file for bankruptcy reorganization.

I didn't push the door open to confront him.

I walked to the trash can at the end of the hallway and poured out the tea.

Then I pulled out my phone and scrolled to a number at the bottom of my contacts.

My finger hovered over the screen without any hesitation as I typed a message.

"I'm ready to honor the terms from ten years ago."

Send.

I reapplied my lipstick using the hallway mirror.

A few minutes later, Xavier emerged from the lounge.

He casually put his arm around my waist and led me toward the center of the ballroom.

As the spotlight hit us, he wore a smile and whispered a warning in my ear.

"Smile. Don't make a scene. The stock price just went up today."

When his fingers touched my waist, I stiffened reflexively.

I could smell it on him.

Amber's scent.

I avoided his touch and pulled my lips into a standard social smile.

Until now, I'd never doubted Xavier.

Not until that girl named Amber showed up at my door with an expense report.

The next morning, I was processing files at my studio.

The receptionist called through the internal line.

"Jade, there's an intern sent by Xavier who insists on seeing you."

Jade Monroe's POV

I looked out through the blinds.

The girl wasn't wearing an employee badge, but she was carrying a limited edition Herms bag.

The same one Xavier had claimed he'd accidentally lost at the airport last week.

Not only was she replacing me as a person, she was inheriting my accessories too.

"Let her in."

I put down the phone.

Amber pushed the door open.

Nineteen years old, young, with tight skin, wearing a business suit obviously imitating my style, but with cheap tailoring and exposed thread ends. Her eyes were full of eager ambition.

She walked up to my desk and handed over a crumpled receipt.

"Ms. Monroe, Mr. Gibson accidentally spilled red wine on my dress in the car last night. He said it counts as business entertainment and told me to ask you to reimburse the dry cleaning fee."

I glanced at the receipt amount: 0-080.

Then I glanced at the dress she was wearing.

A bestseller from online shopping sites, not even worth dry cleaning.

I didn't take the receipt. Instead, I pulled out my phone, opened my payment QR code, and transferred $200.

"Keep the change."

I didn't look up, continuing to review the design drawings in my hand.

"Use the rest to buy some mouthwash. A dirty mouth makes it hard to pass your probationary period."

Amber froze, clearly not expecting this reaction.

She grabbed the receipt from the desk, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it hard at me.

"Who do you think you are! Mr. Gibson said you're just an aging woman who can only draw pictures! He said just looking at you makes him sick!"

I raised my hand and slapped her across the face.

Amber covered her face, staring at me in shock.

"Let me teach you something as your senior."

I pulled out a wet wipe and meticulously cleaned the hand I'd just used to slap her.

"Challenging your supervisor before you've even been confirmed is a major workplace taboo."

Amber's eyes instantly reddened. She pulled out her phone, took a photo of me, and sent a voice message with a sobbing tone.

"Xavier, that old woman hit me... She's so mean, I'm scared."

After sending the voice message, she glared at me viciously, covered her face, and ran out.

"Mr. Gibson says you're just a maid."

That sentence echoed in the office. I threw the used wet wipe into the trash.

Seven years ago when Xavier had a high fever, I stayed by his bedside all night changing cold towels. Back then he'd said:

"You're my angel."

Now angels had inflated and depreciated into maids.

Only youth remained the sole hard currency.

I watched as that wet wipe slowly soaked into the ink at the bottom of the trash can.

That slap was just the interest payment.

Jade Monroe's POV

By the time I got home, it was already dark.

There was a pair of pink slippers by the entrance, like a territorial marker.

Xavier sat on the sofa holding a tablet, looking at reports.

Hearing the door open, he didn't look up. His first words were reproachful.

"Why are you making trouble with an intern at the company? Amber sent me photos-her face is swollen. Can't you be more magnanimous?"

I ignored him and walked straight to the bedroom, dragging out my suitcase.

Xavier followed me in, leaning against the doorframe with furrowed brows.

"I'm talking to you! Jade, are you going through early menopause or something? Amber's family is poor, she's trying to work hard and get ahead. I'm just giving her an opportunity. You're engaging in workplace bullying."

I opened the closet and took down the clothes hanging inside one by one, throwing them into the suitcase.

"I don't have time to listen to your nonsense."

I swept my skincare products into my makeup bag.

Xavier finally sensed something was wrong and stepped forward to hold down my suitcase.

"What are you doing? Running away from home again? I told you it's just a work relationship. Can you stop being so unreasonable?"

I backhanded him with a slap.

This slap was harder than the one I'd given Amber earlier.

Xavier's head snapped to the side, and five finger marks quickly appeared on his face.

He covered his face, looking at me in disbelief.

"This slap is part of the resignation handover process."

I said.

Xavier took a deep breath, his eyes turning cold.

"Fine, Jade, you've grown bold. Since you want to make a scene, let's settle accounts. Everything you eat, wear, and live in-which of it wasn't paid for with my money? You can leave if you want, but don't expect me to beg you to come back. And I'm freezing your supplementary card as punishment for hitting someone today."

"Do whatever you want."

I closed the suitcase.

"I don't want that mess anymore."

"Don't regret this!"

Xavier pointed at me.

"Once you walk out that door, don't ever expect me to spend another cent on you!"

With that, feeling he'd lost face, he stormed out and slammed the door.

The force knocked a framed photo off the wall.

I surveyed this mansion filled with seven years of memories.

I pulled out a stack of yellow sticky notes and placed labels on all the furniture, appliances, and decorative paintings I'd purchased myself.

After finishing this task, I took one last look at the house with my suitcase, then turned and left.

As I drove away from the villa district, my phone vibrated. It was a message from the security guard.

"Did you just leave? A young woman just claimed to be your relative and asked me to let her in."

Sure enough, the replacement was eager to move in the moment I left.

I replied.

"I don't know this person. If she's a solicitor, I suggest calling the police."

An hour later, I arrived at the small apartment I'd purchased before the relationship.

I immediately opened my computer and connected with Sebastian White.

The screen lit up, showing Sebastian's background as an overseas conference room.

A group of executives sat solemnly, but he raised his hand to pause the meeting and focused on the camera.

"Did I interrupt your acquisition?"

I asked.

Sebastian stared at me.

"The acquisition isn't as important as you. Are you sure you want to activate the agreement? Once you sign, I won't let you go."

"I'm sure."

I looked at him.

"I want to get married. To you."

Sebastian couldn't suppress the smile at the corners of his mouth and immediately turned to instruct his assistant to book flights.

"I'm not waiting two months. I'm flying back tomorrow to get married. Put the wedding on the schedule."

"Alright, I'll wait for you."

The video call ended.

I sat alone on the carpet.

Ten years ago he'd said if Xavier ever let me down, he'd be there.

I thought it was a joke then. Now it was a lifeline.

Xavier's love was a consumable good. Sebastian's love was a fixed asset.

Jade Monroe's POV

Early the next morning, I went to the downstairs supermarket to buy necessities.

At checkout, I handed over the black card I usually used.

A few seconds later, the cashier awkwardly returned it.

"The transaction was declined."

The customers in line behind me cast strange looks.

I took back the card, and my phone immediately showed a message from Xavier.

"Supplementary card suspended. If you want to spend money, come home and apologize."

I switched to my own salary card for payment and carried my shopping bags out of the supermarket.

As soon as I got home, my phone vibrated.

A bank text: $200,000 has been forcibly redeemed and transferred from your joint investment account ending in 8899.

The note read: Family operational cost deduction.

That was an account we'd opened years ago to save money together. Most of the money in it came from my early design copyright fees.

Xavier was openly robbing me.

The phone call came immediately after.

"Jade, did you see the deduction notice?"

Xavier's voice was self-righteous.

"This is a fine for your emotional outburst. That two hundred thousand is Amber's compensation for emotional distress and medical expenses. Don't feel wronged-you have to pay the price for doing wrong."

In the background of the call, I could hear Amber's voice.

"Xavier, how do you turn on the seat heater? Does only your girlfriend's seat have one?"

Xavier hastily brushed me off.

"Reflect on yourself. When you're ready to apologize, I'll transfer the money back."

With that, he hung up.

I screenshotted that deduction text and sent it along with the transfer records to my lawyer.

And sent Xavier a message.

"This constitutes illegal misappropriation of jointly owned property. If you don't return it within 24 hours, see you in court."

After returning to my apartment, I opened my computer and pulled up the household expense ledger.

Thanks to Xavier's habits-for his so-called enterprise-level family management, he required every large expenditure to be documented. This had left me with perfect evidence.

Late at night, a social media notification popped up about someone I might know.

The profile picture was Amber. The photo was taken in what used to be my bedroom. She wore my pajamas, taking a selfie in the mirror.

Caption: "The previous owner had decent taste, but now it all belongs to me."

Moments later, a direct message appeared.

"I used up all your skincare products for you. Wouldn't want them to go to waste, right? He's sleeping so soundly next to me right now."

I calmly typed a reply.

"I wore those pajamas when I had a skin condition and never washed them. The skincare products expired three months ago. Hope you enjoy them."

The other side immediately showed "typing..." for a long time, but in the end, sent nothing.

At 3 AM, I couldn't sleep.

I got up and took a melatonin tablet, then sent my lawyer an email asking him to prepare a lawsuit authorization form for recovering gifts given to a third party.

In my dream, Xavier used his first earnings to buy me a ring, swearing to treat me well for a lifetime.

When I woke up, there was a bank deduction notice on my phone.

That "lifetime" turned out to be only seven years.

You want to talk money? Then let's discuss it as commercial fraud.