Chapter 7

Chapter 7

He sat there, his face gray. At last, in front of everyone, he seemed to see what kind of person he'd spent all those years protecting.

That night, his company issued a statement. It acknowledged mishandling the credit owed to the creative lead of its early branding plan, suspended commercial use of the plan, and promised to cooperate in establishing ownership.

All collaborations with Shen Qinghe were put on hold. The image of a brilliant artist she'd spent three years constructing began to collapse overnight.

9

Three days after the disastrous launch, his mother came to see me. She arranged to meet at a restaurant with private dining rooms. When I arrived, she was already seated, a pot of tea on the table.

She looked as she always had: a jade necklace, a jade ring, even her raised eyebrows seeming to search for faults in others.

“Su Wen. Haven't you caused enough trouble?”

I sat without touching the tea.

“Mrs. Gu, say what you came to say.”

Her face darkened. I'd once called her Mom. She hadn't liked it. Now I called her Mrs. Gu. She didn't like that either.

“You and Gu Huai were married, after all. There's no need to be so ruthless.”

I laughed. “You didn't say that when someone else's name replaced mine on my work.”

She set her cup down hard.

“Must a divorced woman drive her ex-husband into a corner? He's grown so thin because of you. Shen Qinghe may have been wrong, but you can't use this to destroy the Gu family's company.”

I looked at her.

“Are you here to apologize for Gu Huai, or negotiate for the family?”

She frowned. “Don't be unreasonable, Su Wen. The family has already given you ample consideration by agreeing to compensate you.”

I took out my phone and played a recording. Her own voice filled the room.

“A woman like Su Wen should count herself blessed by past lives to have married into the Gu family.”

“Qinghe is more sensible. She knows how to bring credit to the family.”

“Perhaps losing the baby was fate. We can't pin our hopes on someone with health like hers.”

Her expression changed, little by little. I stopped the recording. The room was so quiet that all we could hear was the soft simmer of hot tea.

“Mrs. Gu, my dignity isn't yours to grant me. I used to protect yours for Gu Huai's sake.”

Her lips moved.

“One more thing.”

I slid a legal document across the table.

“This is a notice, not a negotiation.”

She opened it, her face growing darker. I stood.

“I don't need the position of Mrs. Gu anymore. As for your family's reputation, you can pick it up yourselves.”

At the door, she suddenly called after me.

“Su Wen, do you really think you can live so well without Gu Huai?”

I stopped and looked back.

“At least when I'm in pain, I won't have to wait for someone who never comes.”

She said nothing more.

Later that day, when Gu Huai came to see me, I'd just returned from the supermarket with a bag of groceries. He stood outside my building, much thinner, with dark circles beneath his eyes.

His suit was still immaculate. He looked drained of life.

“Wenwen.”

I stopped. “If you have anything to discuss, speak to my lawyer.”

“That's not why I'm here.” His voice was hoarse. “I want to apologize.”

I looked at him. I'd once waited so long for those words. So long that now, when I finally heard them, I felt nothing.

He stepped closer.

“I've looked into everything. I know what Shen Qinghe did. I know what my mother said. Your surgery, your medical records, your work...”

His eyes reddened.

“I honestly didn't know how much you'd suffered.”

I suddenly laughed. “Gu Huai. Once again, you didn't know.”

He turned pale.

“You didn't know I was in so much pain I couldn't stand when I miscarried. You didn't know I had a gastric hemorrhage. You didn't know I had surgery. You didn't know someone else was credited for my work. You didn't know your mother insulted me. You didn't know Shen Qinghe always had a crisis at just the right moment.

“What did you know, in all those three years?”

He didn't answer. I answered for him.

“You knew that Shen Qinghe was crying, that she was hurting, that she was sad, that life abroad was hard for her.”

His tears fell.

“Wenwen, I'm sorry.”

Holding my groceries, I suddenly felt very tired. Not because my heart hurt.