Chapter 1

At my promotion and raise celebration dinner, just as I was cutting the cake, a pregnancy report was slapped right onto my face.

Immediately after, my usually sweet and submissive boyfriend, Julian, stood up with red, teary eyes. He pulled my best friend, Daphne, protectively into his arms.

"Chloe, I've been with you for three years. I gave you all the emotional support and status you wanted."

"But now, Daphne is pregnant with my baby. I have to give her and the child a real family. You've always been the generous one, so don't get petty over this. Let’s just end things on good terms."

A collective gasp echoed through the private lounge. My colleagues looked at me as if I were some evil, cold-hearted villain standing in the way of true love.

I set the cake knife down and stared blankly at this deeply emotional, soon-to-be father.

Has medical science really advanced to this miraculous level?

I bought him in the first place because I was lonely and needed someone to take care of me. Instead, he went out and "saved" someone else?

There was just one tiny problem. He is an AI android I purchased. How on earth did he get a human pregnant?

Whispers quickly spread among my colleagues in the room.

Everyone was used to seeing Julian obey my every whim.

Now that he was suddenly rebelling, they all assumed my bossy attitude had finally pushed him over the edge.

Daphne leaned against his chest, tears streaming down her face like clockwork.

"Chloe, I'm so sorry. I know I shouldn't have fallen for Julian."

"But when love hits, nobody can stop it."

"You're so successful. Even without Julian, you'll do amazing. But he’s all I have left."

She looked up at me, acting like a kicked puppy.

"Please, just let us be together. A baby needs a father."

The room went dead silent.

A new intern muttered under her breath, "This is messed up. Stealing your own best friend's man?"

But another female colleague, who had always hated me, immediately snapped back.

"Oh, come on. Boss Vance is always so aggressive and demanding at the office. What man could put up with that?"

"Julian took care of her for three years. He deserves some credit. Now that he’s found real love, is he not allowed to chase his own happiness?"

I looked at the trashy duo in front of me.

I wasn’t even angry. I just felt a profound, ridiculous sense of absurdity.

Julian gently hugged Daphne tighter. When he turned to look at me, his eyes were full of resentment.

"Chloe, look at yourself. You are so cold and heartless."

"Daphne is literally begging for your forgiveness, and you won't even say a single word?"

"Aside from making money, what else do you know? You don't know the first thing about love."

I almost laughed out loud.

His flawless, perfect face was something I had spent three whole months designing, pixel by pixel, on my laptop.

His height, his build, his voice—even this deeply passionate expression he was wearing right now—were customized data I bought for ten million dollars from a top-tier AI tech corporation.

I gave him a humanoid body and an autonomous learning module. I taught him how to understand the world.

And the very first thing he learned was betrayal?

And he somehow managed to make a baby?

I looked down at the pregnancy report. It said she was six weeks pregnant.

Six weeks ago, Julian’s biomimetic hardware was actually sent back to the manufacturer for scheduled maintenance.

He didn't even have his lower half attached back then. How did he get Daphne pregnant? Via Bluetooth?

I didn't expose his lie on the spot.

I wanted to see how far this trashy couple could take their little show.

"Since you guys already have a baby on the way, I'll let you go."

"Consider this dinner my parting gift to you. Now, take your things and get out."

Daphne froze, clearly not expecting me to let go so easily.

Julian was also caught off guard.

"Chloe, I'm glad you're being reasonable."

"But I didn't waste three years of my life for nothing. The downtown penthouse we've been living in has to go to Daphne so she can rest during her pregnancy."

The room went dead silent again. Even the colleagues who had pitied them a second ago now thought Julian was crossing the line.

That luxury penthouse downtown was fully paid for by me. It was worth over twenty million dollars.

And this cheating parasite had the nerve to demand it?

Looking at Julian’s self-righteous face, I seriously wanted to crack his skull open to see if his motherboard had short-circuited.

Over the past three years, I had treated him like royalty.

Afraid he would feel different from normal humans, I got him a fake ID and a bank account.

Every month, I deposited three hundred thousand dollars of pocket money into his card.

The custom-tailored suits he wore and the limited-edition watches on his wrist were all paid for by my credit cards.

I had packaged him into a perfect, wealthy gentleman who never had to worry about making a living.

And Daphne? She was a charity student my family foundation sponsored back in college.

I felt sorry for her, so I not only paid for her tuition but also hired her as my personal assistant right after graduation.

Her clothes, her food—everything she used—was basically funded by me.

And now, the robot I bought and the ungrateful leech I raised had teamed up to steal my penthouse.

Daphne gently tugged Julian’s sleeve, playing the victim.

"Julian, forget it. Chloe cares so much about money, she’ll never give it to us."

"It's fine. I can just rent a cheap place with the baby. As long as I'm with you, I don't mind struggling a bit."

Hearing this, Julian’s white-knight protector instincts instantly flared up.

"No way! My woman and my child will never suffer!"