Chapter 23

The car was dimly lit and hazy.

It was so quiet that they could hear each other’s breathing and heartbeats.

Lu Lanxu didn’t speak, and Zhu Suisui was thinking about how to start the conversation.

She had thought bringing up divorce would be simple.

But now, facing this man she had loved for so many years, Zhu Suisui realized that doing this required mental preparation.

For a moment, they were silent.

When Zhu Suisui finally prepared herself mentally.

“Lanxu…”

“Suisui.”

They spoke at the same time.

Zhu Suisui was slightly stunned, then she slowly looked at the man in front of her, she pursed her lips and said, “You go first.”

She guessed she wouldn’t have the heart to speak after a while.

Lu Lanxu could only see Zhu Suisui’s face through the rearview mirror.

He didn’t know if it was his imagination, but she seemed a little unfamiliar to him today, as if an invisible barrier had been erected between them.

Lu Lanxu looked away and focused on the road ahead, “I’m sorry, I broke my promise today, I…”

“No need to explain, I understand.” Zhu Suisui interrupted Lu Lanxu.

She wasn’t an unreasonable wife, she knew Lu Lanxu’s responsibilities, and she understood that when someone reached his level, freedom was the least important thing.

Without people like Lu Lanxu, this country wouldn’t have been able to struggle out of hardship.

Zhu Suisui had never blamed Lu Lanxu for this.

She hadn’t before, and she wouldn’t now, even after being reborn.

But she was someone who put love above all else.

When she had expectations, any pain was insignificant.

She wouldn’t care or hold a grudge.

But when she decided to withdraw, every little detail of their married life became the straw that broke the camel’s back.

It wasn’t blame.

It was exhaustion.

On this winter night, there was still snow piled up on both sides of the road, melting silently.

Like her heart, that passion had long been covered by the snow and ice, becoming completely cold.

Lu Lanxu fell silent again.

After a while, he said, “Even if you don’t blame me, it’s still my fault.”

Actually, Lu Lanxu was a really good husband, he fulfilled all the responsibilities of a husband. In this marriage, besides not having time to spend with her, he really did a good job.

Zhu Suisui even felt that even after they divorced, she wouldn’t be able to find someone better than Lu Lanxu.

This kind of goodness.

It wasn’t because of his own excellence, but because of his tolerance and indulgence.

Zhu Suisui believed that this man spent all his time and energy outside of work on her.

And because of this.

Zhu Suisui had woven a beautiful dream for herself.

She thought that maybe Lu Lanxu loved her a little bit.

But later she learned.

People like Lu Lanxu, once they got married, no matter who their wife was, he would be equally good.

Because he was a naturally good person.

Whether he loved her or not, it didn’t affect how good he was to the woman who occupied the position of his wife.

In the end.

It was Zhu Suisui’s own problem.

She loved him.

So she longed to be loved.

Once she knew it was hopeless, she didn’t want to continue.

Zhu Suisui looked out the window, at the withered branches, bare and barren.

Because they lacked warmth and nourishment, the trees withered, the leaves fell, and they wouldn’t grow new leaves until the next spring.

She chuckled, “Lanxu, has anyone ever told you that you’re really a good person?”

Lu Lanxu frowned slightly.

Before he could speak, Zhu Suisui continued, “But this kind of goodness, I can’t handle it. I feel very selfish, I relied on the marriage contract from our elders, and I chose to marry you out of all the Lu family members.”

Lu Lanxu gripped the steering wheel a little tighter, his eyes darkened, his Adam’s apple bobbed, his voice devoid of any emotion.

“Do you regret it?”

Zhu Suisui shook her head, “No, I don’t regret any of my decisions, because that was the decision that my seventeen-year-old self wanted to make the most. I won’t hold my seventeen-year-old self accountable, but now, I want to live a different life.”

Lu Lanxu was intelligent.

How could he not understand what Zhu Suisui meant?

He slammed on the brakes.

Zhu Suisui instinctively leaned forward, when she stabilized, she heard the man’s calm voice.

“So, what kind of life do you want to live now?”

Zhu Suisui curled her fingers, she gave a wry smile.

He clearly guessed.

But he wanted her to say it out loud.

But they had come this far, Zhu Suisui knew she would only continue to walk down this path.

She looked ahead, feeling like her body had already died.

She tried to forcibly detach her soul, detach her love that had seeped into her bones, leaving only a walking corpse.

Numb.

Cold.

Empty.

Zhu Suisui felt a sharp pain in her heart, it was the struggle of leaving the one she loved.

But she still heard her voice, it was so unfamiliar it didn’t sound like her own.

She said.

“Lanxu, let’s get a divorce.”

Divorce.

To truly be reborn.

To not be obsessed with a love that had never been reciprocated.

Otherwise, even if she was reborn, she would keep making concessions because of this marriage.

In the end.

She would still be walking the same path.

To become herself again, to cut out the rotten flesh, even if it hurt, it was something she had to do.

No answer came.

The next second.

A “click” sound, the seatbelt was unbuckled.

Zhu Suisui looked up, the door was already open, and the driver’s seat was empty.

Then.

The backseat door opened.

The cold wind blew in, dispelling the warmth inside the car.

In the dim light, the man standing by the car, his handsome and delicate face was emotionless.

He leaned in, bringing with him the unique crisp fragrance of his body, his usually affectionate and gentle phoenix eyes now had a sharpness and a suppressed anger.

Lu Lanxu grabbed her hand, forcing her to look at him, his eyes were dark and cold.

“Suisui, do you know what you’re saying?”

They were very close now.

Zhu Suisui could even feel Lu Lanxu’s hand on her skin, hot and burning.

Those black eyes were fixed on her.

This was a look she had never seen from him, the restrained and reserved him.

She was a little confused, but she didn’t want to delve deeper.

Zhu Suisui nodded seriously at him, she chuckled, “To outsiders, I must have been kicked in the head by a donkey, to actually want to divorce you, Lu Lanxu. After all, to everyone else, it’s a blessing from my ancestors that I could marry you.”

Lu Lanxu looked at her smile.

There was self-deprecation and relief, but no longer the tenderness she used to have when she looked at him.

He knew she was serious.

She really didn’t want to be with him anymore.

Lu Lanxu’s heart was suddenly pierced by countless tiny needles, the pain made him gasp for breath.