Chapter 6

He had been personally negotiating the venue, the publicity, and everything else for Xia Miao.

When he discovered Wen Yu wasn’t home, he called her in a fury.

He had made himself perfectly clear.

“Wen Yu, if there really were something between Xia Miao and me, do you think I’d need to hide it from you?”

He had been warning her: if he truly wanted Xia Miao, he would be with her openly.

He wouldn’t conceal it out of consideration for Wen Yu.

Deep down, he hadn’t thought she was worth that effort.

Then why did his heart hurt so much now?

He drove to her company, heedless of everything else.

To hell with concealing the marriage. To hell with all those considerations.

He found her at Xia Miao’s exhibition venue.

She was on a sofa, discussing work with her staff.

Even beneath her heavy makeup, he could see how pale she was.

One hand rested loosely against her waist. The hand holding her pen trembled.

Cold sweat had soaked the back of her blouse, yet she kept her face composed.

He remembered her words.

“One mistake could destroy everything I’ve worked for. I have no one behind me, after all.”

10

Since leaving the hospital, I had been so weak that standing for too long made me feel faint.

But I couldn’t afford the slightest lapse at work.

I was going through the details with my staff when Lu Chenzhou suddenly approached.

His face was darker than I had ever seen it. He stared at me without blinking.

I forced myself to my feet and greeted him politely.

“Mr. Lu. You’re early. Has something changed with the exhibition?”

Knowing how much it mattered to him, I took out my notebook, ready to write.

He said nothing for a long time.

Puzzled, I looked up.

“Mr. Lu?”

His eyes suddenly reddened.

His voice came out rough.

“My wife…”

Everyone nearby stopped working and looked over in confusion.

“His wife? Who did Mr. Lu just call his wife? Xia Miao isn’t here!”

He seemed not to hear.

He came closer and enclosed my hand in his, gripping it tightly.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

More and more people gathered.

Heat rushed to my head.

“Lu Chenzhou, what the hell are you doing?”

I didn’t want to become the subject of gossip after the divorce. Couldn’t this marriage end as quietly as it had begun?

I pulled him toward the conference room.

The proud man, nearly one hundred and ninety centimeters tall, let me lead him without resistance. His eyes never left my face.

I slammed the door.

“Have you lost your mind? You were the one who wanted to hide our marriage! What are you doing now?”

He cupped my cheek, stroking it gently.

“I spoke to the doctor. After losing a pregnancy, you need two weeks’ rest at home. With the gas poisoning as well, you need longer.”

So he knew about that now.

I knocked his hand away.

“Don’t pretend to care.

“For years, I thought you loved me. You kept proving me wrong in the cruelest ways.

“If you feel anything for the years we’ve been married—if you have the slightest sympathy for me—stop coming here like a lunatic and calling me your wife.

“And stop changing Xia Miao’s exhibition plans over and over.

“I’d be very grateful.”

I didn’t know which part hurt him. His eyes reddened again.

“All right. I won’t disturb you at work.

“I won’t interfere with her exhibition either. Handle it as you see fit.

“But Wen Yu, please don’t work yourself so hard. Your body can’t take it…”

I looked at him coldly and gave a mocking laugh.

Could I stop?

Did someone like me have that luxury?

At last, he left without protest.

But that evening, after everyone else had gone home, he came back with an insulated food jar.

He stood in the doorway, awkward and hesitant, not daring to enter.

“I made chicken soup. Remember to have some.”

He set it on the floor and walked away, looking forlorn.

The sight of chicken soup made me nauseous.

I tossed the container in the trash.

What I hadn’t expected was that he would come every night.

Every time, he brought soup he had made himself.

He knew I wouldn’t drink it. Still, he came.

I sent Xia Miao an irritated message.

[When are you going to get him to divorce me? Can you stop him coming here and bothering me?]

She called immediately.

“Wen Yu, drop the act.

“What did you do to him? All he sees, all he thinks about now is you!”