The next morning, I was dressed in the red pantsuit that Anna had picked for me exactly at 6:45 AM as Asher had instructed. The car drive to Wang Corporation was silent.
Asher sat beside me, his phone was on his ear, and tablet was on his knee.
"The numbers are unacceptable. I want the revised projections by ten, not noon. I don't care about the complications. Fix it."
He ended the call and immediately started another.
"Push the meeting to Thursday."
His eyes never left the screen. I looked out the window. There were street vendors, ordinary people with ordinary problems. They felt impossibly far.
After what felt like hours, we finally reached the office building. It was huge. Asher stepped out first. His phone was now in his pocket. He came to my side and opened the car door for me.
The perfect couple act had began.
I stepped out holding his hand, and without saying anything we entered inside. This was the first time I was entering his office building, and it was the same as I had expected. Huge, looking expensive with hundreds of employees bowing their heads as we walked by. I simply nodded with a smile but Asher just ignored them.
We then entered the elevator, Asher was still holding my hand. The elevator opened into the executive floor. People stepped aside as we passed, murmuring respectful greetings which he barely acknowledged like before.
His office was at the corner. It had floor to ceiling windows on two sides with breathtaking views of the Huangpu Rver. The office had a massive desk, minimalist furniture, and the expensive abstract art.
He left my hand, and went straight to his desk, already turning on the laptop and sorting through files his assistant had left on the table. During the whole process, he didn't say a single word to me.
I stood near the door not knowing what to do.
"Where should I…?"
"There's fine." He said without looking up, gesturing toward the seating area by the windows.
"What exactly am I supposed to do while…"
"Just sit. First meeting starts in ten minutes."
Just sit. As if I were a plant he'd placed for decoration.
I walked towards the sofa and sat there, my frustration building with each second. He hadn't looked at me once since we entered, hadn't explained anything, just expected me to sit quietly in the corner.
His assistant knocked and entered.
"Sir, the acquisition team is ready."
"Send them in."
Three men entered, each carrying tablets. They nodded politely to me before turning towards Asher.
"The acquisition's status."
"Contracts are being finalized. Legal team has flagged two clauses that need revision."
"Which clauses?"
"The liability limitations and the non compete terms."
Asher's fingers moved across his tablet.
"The non compete is non negotiable. Tell them they can accept our terms or walk away."
I watched him work. He was sharp, cold, and commanding. This was a different Asher than the one who'd kissed my knuckles at dinner. This one was calculated and controlled.
The meeting lasted forty minutes. When they left, Asher immediately pulled up new documents.
"Asher." I said.
"Mmm." He didn't look up.
"What am I supposed to be doing?"
"Observing."
"Observing what?"
"You'll learn." He signed something on his tablet.
"How am I supposed to learn if no one explains anything?"
Finally, he looked up, his eyes slightly irritated at the interruption.
"You're here to be visible, Rysa. To show the board and investors that we're stable. That's your function today. Next meeting is at 9:30 with department heads."
And just like that, he dismissed me.
At 9:30, another meeting began. Five people discussing Southeast Asian expansion. I sat on the sofa and watched Asher dismantle their presentation. They left looking defeated. Asher's assistant appeared immediately with coffee. One for him, one for me that I hadn't asked for.
"Thank you." I murmured to her.
At 11:00, a video conference started. Asher switched to English, negotiating with European partners. I understood the words but not the context. By 11:45, my patience had worn out.
"Asher."
He held up one finger wait while typing an email. I waited.
One minute.
Two.
Three.
"Asher."
"What?" He didn't look up.
"Can I at least have something to read or access to a computer? Something to do besides stare at the river?"
"You can use your phone."
"My phone that only has your number in it?"
His fingers paused on the keyboard.
"What do you need?"
"I don't know. News? Books? Literally anything?"
He sighed, opened a drawer, and pulled out a tablet. He tapped it a few times, then held it out.
"Here. Pre loaded with business journals and news feeds. Don't download anything without asking."
I took it from his hands, and within a second he was already back to work. At 12:30, his assistant brought lunch. She placed a beautiful bento box on the table in front of me.
"Mrs. Wang, please enjoy."
"Thank you." I watched her place a similar box on Asher's desk and then left. "Are we eating together?"
Asher picked up his chopsticks without pausing his typing.
"I eat at my desk."
Of course he did.
I looked at the food: sushi, edamame, pickled vegetables, fruit cut into flowers. It looked like art but I had no appetite.
"Asher, can I ask you something?"
"Hmm." His chopsticks were in his mouth, and eyes on screen.
"Why did you bring me here?"
"I told you. You need to be visible."
"But I'm not doing anything. I'm just sitting here."
"That's the point." He finally looked at me,his chopsticks paused mid air. "You're my wife. Your presence here shows stability, commitment, family values. That matters to the board. You're part of the narrative we're building."
"The narrative." I repeated. "Not a person."
"Rysa." His tone had a warning. "I don't have time for this right now."
"And when you have time?"
He set down his chopsticks.
"What exactly do you want from me?"
"I want to know what I'm supposed to be doing. I want to understand why I'm here. I want…" I stopped.
"You want what?"
"I want to feel like I'm part of this, not just placed here like a vase."
"You are part of this. You're representing…"
"The company. I know. You've said that." I set down the tablet he'd given me. "But what am I supposed to do, Asher? Sit here every day and watch you work? Smile at strangers?"
"Is that really so difficult? Most women would be grateful for the position you're in."
The words landed like a slap.
"Grateful." I said quietly.
"Yes. Grateful. You have access to resources most people never dream of. You're protected, provided for, elevated to a position of influence…"
"I have no influence!" I literally shouted. "I have expensive clothes and a phone with one contact and a husband who treats me like a business acquisition!"
Silence fell between us. Asher's face went blank.
"Lower your voice. These walls are glass."
"I don't care."
"You should. Everything we do here is visible. Everything is scrutinized."
"Then maybe you should have thought of that before you dragged me here to be your silent prop!"
He stood abruptly, walked around his desk, and stopped a few feet from where I sat.
"I didn't drag you here. I told you last night you're earning your place in this company, in this life. That requires presence. If you can't handle one day of sitting in a comfortable office…"
"One day?" I stood too. "Is this what you expect? Every day? Sitting here like furniture while you ignore me except when you need me to perform?"
"I'm not ignoring you. I'm working. There's a difference."
"No, there isn't. Not when you work every second of every day and I'm just here sitting idle."
His phone buzzed, and he immediately answered his phone interrupting our conversation in the middle. I sat back down on the sofa and picked up the tablet he'd given me. After his call was over, he went back to working on his laptop, and I didn't have energy to argue with him anymore because I knew it didn't matter to him at all.
I stared at the tablet in my hands, reading the business news, journals. I was bored. I looked around his office and noticed how different it was from my father's. And suddenly I remembered a scene from my father's office before our marriage.
My father's office was bright with bright colors all over. His desk had been buried under papers, the walls were covered with photographs of him shaking hands with officials, and certificates of achievements.
"Dad, I want to understand the company. I could help…"
He'd laughed, and gestured for me to sit.
"Rysa, you're a smart girl. But this isn't for you."
"Why not? I have a degree. I could learn…"
"Your pretty head is for marrying well, not for numbers." He'd patted my hand.
"But Dad, I want to…"
"What do you want is to trust your father. I've arranged everything perfectly. The right schools, the right circles, the right introduction to the Wang family. Asher Wang is exactly the kind of match that will secure both our futures."
"I don't want to be a match."
"Do you know how many fathers would give you this opportunity? A marriage into one of Shanghai's most powerful families?"
Later, I'd enrolled in the MBA program in secret.
Using money I'd saved from the allowance he gave me to shop. For two years, I'd studied at night. Finance, operations, strategic management, corporate governance. I'd learned to read balance sheets, to understand market dynamics. I'd learned everything my father said my pretty head couldn't handle.
But by then, the wedding date had been set. By then, I was already promised to Asher Wang. By then, my father's company was already crumbling, and my marriage was holding together deals that should have fallen apart years ago.
The degree sat in a drawer in my old bedroom at my parents' house, hidden under childhood photos. My father had been right, in the end, my education was useless. I'd married well, just as he'd planned. And when his empire collapsed, my pretty head and degree couldn't save him.
A knock brought me back to the present. It was Asher's assistant.
"Sir, the regional heads are ready for the video conference."
"Set it up." Asher said, not looking up from the document he was reviewing.
The large screen on the wall went alive dividing into six squares.
"Gentlemen." Asher began. "Let's begin with Q3 performance. Beijing, your numbers first."
The Beijing executive explained his report. Asher listened with full focus, asking questions that showed he'd already read every detail of the reports.
"…and market volatility remains our primary concern." The Beijing executive was saying. "The recent government crackdown on financial irregularities has created uncertainty."
"Manageable uncertainty." Asher replied. "We've handled worse."
"Of course, Sir. Though the Lin family scandal has created some reputational challenges in certain circles."
Lin family was my family.
"Explain." Asher said.
"Some of our partners are concerned about association with compromised entities. There's been talk about ensuring distance from the situation."
"If I may, Sir." Another executive asked. "This is precisely why risk management protocols exist. We need to ensure our assets aren't contaminated by unreliable partners."
He didn't look at me but the implication was crystal clear. He was talking about my family, about me. My hands tightened on the tablet in my lap. Asher, who had been leaning back in his chair, went perfectly still.
"Mr. Zhang." Asher said quietly. "Elaborate on your risk management concerns."
"Well, Sir, the Lin family's collapse has created exposure for any entity connected to them. Legally, financially, reputationally."
"I see." Asher's tone was perfectly neutral. "And you believe Wang Corporation is currently exposed to this risk?"
"I'm simply suggesting we maintain appropriate distance from compromised…"
"From what, exactly?" The temperature in the room seemed to drop. "Be specific, Mr. Zhang. What asset are you concerned about?"
"I'm speaking in general terms, of course…" He was afraid now.
"No." Asher leaned forward. "You said contaminated by unreliable partners. You're in a meeting where my wife is present. So let me ask you directly: are you suggesting that my marriage represents a risk to this company?"
Silence fell across the video conference. The other executives suddenly found their eyes on the documents. Zhang's face went pale.
"Sir, I wasn't implying…"
"You were implying exactly that." Asher's voice was deadly. "You were suggesting that my wife is a liability that should be distanced from company operations."
"I apologize if my words were misinterpreted…"
"They weren't misinterpreted. They were simply stupid." Asher stood. "Let me clarify something for everyone on this call. My wife is not an asset to be evaluated or a risk to be managed. She is my partner. She represents this company alongside me. And any executive who fails to understand that distinction has no future here."
Everyone became silent.
"The only contamination I see is your lack of judgment. You're fired. Effective immediately. Your access to company systems will be revoked within the hour. HR will contact you regarding your severance. This conversation is over." Asher announced.
He ended the video conference with a single click. He stood there for a moment, his back to me, hands were on his desk. I could see the tension in his shoulders. Then he turned, and looked at me.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
The question surprised me so much I almost didn't answer.
"I... yes."
"He was out of line."
"He was saying what half your company probably thinks."
"I don't care what they think." He moved toward me. "They don't get to disrespect you. Not in my presence. Not ever."
He crouched down in front of me, and I realized his hands were shaking slightly.
"Listen to me. You are not a liability. You are not contaminated. You are not a risk I'm managing. Do you understand?"
I stared at him, this man who'd deleted my contacts and dressed me like a doll and brought me here to be decorative. He was the same man who was now defending me angrily that felt genuine.
"Do you understand?" He repeated.
"Yes." I whispered.
His hands came up to cup my face.
"No one talks about you that way. No one questions your place beside me. Not my executives, not the board, not anyone."
His thumbs brushed my cheekbones, and I realized I was shaking too.
Then he returned to his desk. But his hands were still trembling slightly as he picked up his phone to call HR. I sat on the sofa, my face still warm where he'd touched it, and I tried to understand what had just happened.
He'd defended me. Publicly without hesitation.
And I realized something. He might control me. He might dress me and isolate me and treat me like a managed asset. But he would also destroy anyone who tried to diminish me.
And I still couldn't decide if that made me safer or more trapped than I'd been before. Maybe it was both. Maybe with Asher Wang, it would always be both.