Tonight Her Love Ended novel Chapter 172

Nova looked at Tristan. They rarely shared such a calm and peaceful moment.

She asked, "Mr. Forrester, you represent the absolute pinnacle of capital. Let me ask you a question.

If I proposed a joint project where you had to put in 99 percent of the initial effort, bear 100 percent of the risk during the process, and handle 80 to 90 percent of the long-term maintenance, but the final contract could only bear my name... And on top of that, there's a 99 percent chance this project will stall or reverse your career progression. Furthermore, it's not even guaranteed you'll get the final results. The contract offers you no guarantees, the law offers you no protection, and you can only rely entirely on my personal character and verbal promises. Would you choose to partner with me?"

Tristan let out a soft scoff. He didn't condescendingly ask 'What do you think?' Instead, he answered her with absolute certainty, "No. There isn't a single person in this world who would agree to a project like that."

Nova gave a self-deprecating smile and nodded. "Yes, there is, Mr. Forrester. There are so many people who choose this exact partnership. They do it tirelessly!"

"The name of this project is 'marriage and childbirth.' A woman gets married, serves the man's family, and risks her life to bear his children. The woman absorbs the entirety of the risk. After birth, the child takes the man's last name. The woman bears the physical damage to her own body, and if the man later cheats or commits domestic violence, the woman has to suffer the consequences of that, too."

Tristan's gaze rested silently on Nova.

Nova's eyes grew red.

"The inherent unfairness of marriage for women is that the moment they enter it, they have to throw all their chips on the table at once. Meanwhile, a man's chips are released gradually over time. During this process, the man can choose to change his mind whenever he wants, but the woman can never take her chips back."

"I took an economics class while working at Forrester Group. There's a term in economics called 'risk hedging.' When a woman enters a marriage, she bets every chip she has on a perpetual bond, using herself as the performance guarantee. If she's lucky, she gets a little interest every month—that's her partner's emotional return. If she's unlucky, she loses her principal and interest entirely, and might even pay with her life."

"I'm telling you this because I am soberly aware that every relationship is a game of leverage. I... have neither the capital nor the right to play this game against you. I admit defeat. I want to... forfeit. Can I?"

As she spoke those last three words, her voice trembled with tentative desperation.

Time seemed to freeze in that moment. Just when Nova thought Tristan would never agree, she heard him speak.

"You can."

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