Empty.
‘You know Shen Cheng well,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘If I’m with Shen Cheng, he’ll treat me and Xiao Bao well.’
‘Do you actually want to be with Shen Cheng?’ Gu Jiao Wu asked. He held Qiao Tan Yuan’s chin. ‘Unless I die, you can’t be with Shen Cheng.’
‘Then you can die,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘You have no right to stop me.’
Gu Jiao Wu let go of Qiao Tan Yuan’s chin, pulled her body closer to his body and he kissed her lips. He wanted to glue her to him, and not let another man near her.
When Gu Jiao Wu was pulling Qiao Tan Yuan’s pants down, she kicked his leg with her heel. He let go of her, and she retreated several steps.
‘Gu Jiao Wu, you’re despicable!’ Qiao Tan Yuan said.
‘Qiao Tan Yuan, do you want to kill me?’ Gu Jiao Wu asked and rubbed his sore leg.
‘Yes, I want to kill you,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. She didn’t want to fight with Gu Jiao Wu, and she didn’t want him to die. ‘Stop treating me like a toy. You can’t change my mind through flesh. Satisfying a physical need is meaningless.’
‘Are you saying no matter what, you won’t believe me or give me a chance?’ Gu Jiao Wu asked.
‘Yes,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said.
Qiao Tan Yuan had Xiao Bao. Xiao Bao was enough. She didn’t want to feel love or hate anymore.
‘Do you hate me?’ Gu Jiao Wu asked.
‘No, I don’t hate you,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said.
‘They why don’t you want to be with me?’ Gu Jiao Wu asked.
‘Because I don’t have the strength to love you anymore,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘In the past I loved you, you were my world. I schemed to get you to marry me, to give me a chance.’ She dug her fingernails into her palms to stop herself from crying, and she took a deep breath. ‘Do you need me to recount how I lived being married to you for three years? You didn’t look at me once, you didn’t care about me. Do you remember our first wedding anniversary? It took me a lot of courage to wear lingerie in front of you. But you acted like you couldn’t see me.’
Gu Jiao Wu didn’t know what to say to comfort Qiao Tan Yuan.
‘On your birthday I did my best to cook a meal for you,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘I called you to come home. But you said you were busy, and told me not to bother you then you hung up on me. If it was my birthday, I only wanted to eat a meal with you. But you didn’t bother to find out my birthday. It wasn’t important that you didn’t give me flowers or even a small gift. But if I wanted to eat a meal with you, I had to ask your family or your friends to ask you to eat a meal with us. You didn’t smile at me. I waited for you to look my way. But in your eyes I didn’t exist. In your dreams the woman’s name you called was Chu Da.’
Qiao Tan Yuan blinked back tears, and composed herself.
‘You didn’t pay attention to me,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘I didn’t receive even a bit of your love. Now you’re saying you love me, and you want to be with me. Do you expect me to jump if you say jump?’
Gu Jiao Wu didn’t want to see the sadness, and skeptical look in Qiao Tan Yuan’s eyes.
‘Why won’t you believe I love you?’ Gu Jiao Wu asked.
‘I don’t need your love anymore,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘I don’t need you. I don’t want anything to do with you. It’s too late. You’ve hurt me too deeply. Now my only wish is to live a peaceful life with Xiao Bao. If you love me then you’ll grant my wish.’
Gu Jiao Wu felt his heart break.
‘I didn’t fulfil my duties as a husband to you during those three years,’ Gu Jiao Wu said. ‘But it’s in the past. Now I can give you and Xiao Bao a happy family life.’
‘There are many children who have single parents,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘I’ll do everything to give Xiao Bao a happy life. Gu Jiao Wu, let go.’
Let go? Gu Jiao Wu looked at Qiao Tan Yuan, if he could let go then he would have let go long ago.
‘Qiao Tan Yuan, I wasn’t the only one at fault for our failed first marriage,’ Gu Jiao Wu said. ‘I can’t erase what I did in the past. But now I don’t want to let go.’
‘Why are you cornering me?’ Qiao Tan Yuan asked. ‘Do you want to see what dirty tactics I’ll use against you?’
‘I know you won’t,’ Gu Jiao Wu said.
‘If that’s what you believe then I can say you don’t know me,’ Qiao Tan Yuan said. ‘How ever low you’re willing to go, I can match you.’
‘If this is your wish then I’ll grant your wish,’ Gu Jiao Wu said.
Gu Jiao Wu left without saying another word or looking back.
Qiao Tan Yuan collapsed on the bed. She didn’t care if Gu Jiao Wu actually let go of her, and she didn’t regret her decision.
Old memories resurfaced in Qiao Tan Yuan’s head. She remembered on her birthday, she reserved a table at Gu Jiao Wu’s favorite restaurant. She called him to ask him to eat dinner with her. He picked up after she called the fifth time, and he promised he would come. She sat at the restaurant until eleven at night. That night she waited five hours, he didn’t show up. She called his phone again, his phone was switched off and she worried that he was in an accident. She looked for him, he was drinking with Du Lei Xin. In Gu Jiao Wu’s heart, there was his family, friends and career but she didn’t exist in his heart.
Qiao Tan Yuan thought if Gu Jiao Wu was momentarily curious about her, and wanted to give Xiao Bao a family then she would rather he didn’t pay attention to her. She let herself cry, but told herself to keep standing tall and not fall just because Gu Jiao Wu wouldn’t be in her life anymore.
After seven days past, Gu Jiao Wu actually kept his promise. Qiao Tan Yuan visited Shen Cheng at the hospital in the mornings, she went to work in the afternoons and spent time with Xiao Bao in the evenings to keep herself busy. Shen Cheng told her Gu Jiao Wu brought Shen Cheng gifts, and visited Shen Cheng after she left the hospital.
Mrs Shen treated Qiao Tan Yuan well like Mrs Shen used to when Qiao Tan Yuan was younger, because after Shen Cheng’s car accident Mrs Shen only wanted Shen Cheng to be happy.
Shen Cheng’s doctor discharged Shen Cheng from the hospital after Shen Cheng’s injuries healed.
Hu Zui Ren was happy to hear Shen Cheng could attend the birthday party. Qiao Tan Yuan was worried Shen Cheng was pushing himself too soon so she agreed to escort Shen Cheng to the birthday party.
End of Chapter 104