He Lent Me Out for Five Years, Then His Brother Married Me

Every holiday, my boyfriend would lend me out to his single friends so they could deal with their families' nagging about marriage. He called it "brothers helping each other out." His friends, of course, were more than happy. But some families looked down on me—they threw food in my face during dinner. Some saw right through the arrangement and kicked me out in the middle of the night. Every time I tried to refuse, Leonardo would soothe me in that gentle voice: "Just have one meal with them. After this, we'll get married." So for five years, I never spent a single holiday with Leonardo. This Christmas, I was slapped in public again. The mother of the guy called me a "loose woman" and splashed a bowl of hot soup down my skirt. Clutching my scalded red hand, I rushed back to the Falcone house with red-rimmed eyes, looking for Leonardo. As I turned the corner by the garden, I heard one of his friends ask: "Bro, you really don't mind us taking your girl home?" Leonardo took a drag on his cigarette and said casually: "What's there to mind? Every time she goes with you guys, I get to bring Gianna home for the holidays." Someone chimed in with a chuckle: "Leonardo's got it figured out—kills two birds with one stone." "And if it ever comes out, we can always blame her for cheating first." I froze on the spot, my nails digging into my palms. My father died early; my mother had been ill for years. At sixteen, I only stayed in school because of the Falcone family's sponsorship. All these years, I studied like mad and tried to be a proper girlfriend—just so Leonardo would feel he hadn't helped the wrong person. But now, in his eyes, all my forbearance was just a good deal. Until New Year's, when I went home with another of his brothers. That mother gave me a jade bangle—the one meant only for the daughter-in-law of their family. In the past, I would have returned it privately. But this time, I paused for a few seconds, then slipped it onto my wrist. When I came back from the De Luca house and pushed open the door, Leonardo smiled at me like he'd been waiting: "Welcome back. You did good." But I felt no warmth at all. Because his group of friends were all staring at me with glinting eyes: "You didn't get hit this time? I thought Luca was supposed to be a clean freak?" "Damn, Gianna wins this round—Leonardo, your bet was off." Leonardo didn't answer. He gave me a slightly surprised once-over: "Fine, I lost." That one light sentence sent a chill through my whole body. So they'd all gathered here just to bet on whether Luca would hit me. And on Leonardo's face, there was not a shred of guilt for handing me over to someone else. Not a trace of worry that I might get hurt. Only the boredom of losing a bet. I numbly averted my gaze and turned to leave. But suddenly Gianna grabbed my wrist: "What's that on your hand?" Her words died in her throat. The others stared at me warily: "Isn't that the De Luca family's jade bangle worth 9.6 million?" "The one passed down to their daughter-in-law?" "What does that mean?" Even Leonardo looked at the bangle with suspicion. Only then did I understand the meaningful look Luca had given me when I accepted it. But Gianna suddenly cried out sharply: "Did you steal it or trick them into giving it to you?" Hearing that, Leonardo's expression slowly relaxed: "Selina, I told you I'd marry you. You don't need to use underhanded tricks just to save face." The others suddenly got it: "Right—how could the De Lucas ever accept a girl from the bottom?" "The De Lucas just offered it as a gesture, and she actually thinks she's worthy." Mockery like this had never stopped since I went from being a Falcone-sponsored student to Leonardo's girlfriend. Leonardo never looked down on my background. But he also never stopped others from demeaning me. He even actively sent me to his friends' homes. The food thrown at me, the things smashed, the rage taken out on me, the punching bag I became— all happened with his tacit approval. I used to think he had no choice, that he couldn't shield me from so much. But today at the De Luca house, Luca's father casually mentioned that a few days ago, Leonardo had brought Gianna back to the Falcone house. And publicly acknowledged her as his fiancée. Luca's father said it with some admiration for the younger generation: "That Falcone kid's got guts. He shut down all the dissent." In that moment, I finally understood. When you truly love someone, you clear the path for them. All that talk about unequal social standing—it's just a matter of attitude. And I was never part of his attitude. "All right, enough already." Leonardo stubbed out his cigarette, interrupting them for the first time: "Selina, the De Luca family isn't simple. I'll return the bangle for you." He reached for my hand, but I covered the bangle. A flicker of surprise crossed Leonardo's eyes: "What's wrong? Don't want to?" "I'm not feeling well... My stomach's been off today." I wasn't lying. There was a dish on the De Luca table with dried chili powder; I took one bite and felt sick. Leonardo used to remember my dietary restrictions—he'd always remind the kitchen when we ate out. But these past two years, he'd been taking Gianna out more and more, and no one paid attention to what I could or couldn't eat anymore. I suddenly remembered how my mother had looked so weak during our last video call and asked: "Selina, is he good to you? Don't end up like me, suffering your whole life." I didn't dare tell her that I didn't even dare mention what I couldn't eat anymore. Leonardo looked at me seriously. That gaze made me briefly recall how, in the past, if I so much as mentioned feeling unwell, he would drop everything and take careful care of me. But now he curled a faint, dismissive smile and shattered my hope: "Can't stomach the fine food from the De Lucas?" The warmth in my cheeks plummeted. Leonardo took off the bangle and patted my shoulder: "Go rest now."