Chapter 45: Signing the Divorce Papers

After finishing a task, Lin Qingya had just taken a sip of water when she turned her head and saw Qin Xingwan.

She was standing at the doorway, looking utterly devastated.

"Wanwan?"

Lin Qingya hurried to open the door, and was then shocked by the injuries on her face.

"How did your face get like this?"

"Who hit you?"

"Did he really lay a hand on you?"

Qin Xingwan's hollow, numb expression finally came to life; looking at her friend, tears streamed down her face.

"Qingya."

Her voice was hoarse, "I want to sleep at your place."

"Yes, yes, yes, go to sleep first." Lin Qingya supported her as she entered the lounge inside.

Qin Xingwan collapsed onto the bed, but she couldn't fall asleep no matter what.

Closing her eyes, those painful events rushed into her mind one after another, each and every one of them making her chest feel suffocated.

It seemed she didn't even have the strength to cry anymore.

Later, she drifted into a hazy sleep, her mind filled with bizarre and grotesque images.

When she woke up, it was already seven in the evening.

There were over a dozen missed calls on her phone screen, all from Chu Li.

She turned her phone face down, having no intention of calling back.

If it weren't for the fact that she planned to go register for divorce tomorrow, she would have blocked all his contact methods.

Suddenly, Lin Qingya's angry voice came from outside: "You beat her like that, what face do you have to come here and look for her?"

Following that was Chu Li's cold voice: "Where is she?"

"Don't even think about seeing her."

"Lin Qingya, you had better not provoke me."

Qin Xingwan climbed off the bed; Chu Li had tracked her down, and she couldn't implicate Qingya.

She pushed the door open and walked out, looking at Chu Li coldly, "What are you here for?"

Chu Li's eyes lit up, and he walked over quickly.

Lin Qingya was faster, preemptively blocking Qin Xingwan behind her, guarding her vigilantly.

At this moment, Chu Li only had eyes for Qin Xingwan; his thin lips trembled slightly: "Things are not the way you think they are, listen to my explanation."

"I only discovered the micro-surveillance in that smoke detector two days ago; since the matter had already occurred, I thought I would play along with the scheme."

Business warfare is just like that; opportunities are fleeting.

Next time, there is no telling who will emerge victorious.

Chu Li had seized this opportunity and chose to ruin the other party without the slightest hesitation.

As for his wife, he would explain later, he would compensate her, and he would love her twice as much.

He hadn't expected that Qin Xingwan was unable to conceive, nor had he expected that his mother would lay a hand on her, or even that his grandfather would step forward to demand they divorce.

Everything had tangled into a mess.

"Xingwan, come back with me." He reached his hand forward, expecting his wife to nod.

Qin Xingwan touched her own cheek; Madam Chu had used great force when she hit her, and if she hadn't desperately blocked it, and if the servants hadn't been nearby, she feared her face would have been ruined.

To Chu Li, these things would eventually become insignificant.

"No." She shook her head indifferently, "Tomorrow morning at nine, I will wait for you at the entrance of the Minzhengju."

Chu Li stepped forward, his expression full of regret.

Qin Xingwan knew what he was regretting; what he regretted wasn't abandoning his wife, but not making proper arrangements to keep that matter hidden until the end.

She slowly stepped back, putting distance between them.

"Chu Li, look at me now, covered in injuries, and my career and future are gone too; are you still not satisfied?"

"Grandfather has stepped in; you know what my fate will be if we don't divorce."

"Do you really have to take my life?"

In that last sentence, hatred erupted.

Chu Li stood there, motionless.

He looked at the tears in Qin Xingwan's eyes and the injuries all over her face, only then realizing how much harm he had caused her.

The words to beg for forgiveness felt like cotton stuck in his throat.

Actually, thinking about it, in their three years of marriage, he hadn't really treated her very well.

Now that it had reached the point where divorce was unavoidable, it was his fault.

"I agree to the divorce."

The moment he said these words, his heart ached terribly.

At this moment, he realized that his feelings for Qin Xingwan were not the affection of family, but love.

He realized that he liked Qin Xingwan.

Like a man likes a woman.

He realized his own feelings, his eyes moistening, yet he still revealed a gentle smile and said softly: "Tomorrow morning at nine, see you at the Minzhengju."

He placed the paper bag he had brought onto the table, "There is medicine here, remember to apply it."

After saying this, he turned and left, his desolate figure disappearing into the darkness.

Qin Xingwan covered her face and sobbed in Lin Qingya's arms.

Sadness and pain... relief and joy.

This marriage, which had been like a quagmire, was finally coming to an end.

Lin Qingya smiled and offered her congratulations, but as she smiled, tears welled up in her eyes.

That night, Qin Xingwan stayed at her good friend's house and slept soundly through the night.

At nine o'clock the next day, Qin Xingwan appeared at the entrance of the Minzhengju on time, and upon looking up, she saw Chu Li in a white shirt.

She felt somewhat dazed.

That white shirt was the one he had worn back when they registered their marriage.

At that time, Chu Li had kept a cold face the entire time, and naturally, she had not been any happier.

The two of them did not look like they were there to get married, but rather like they were there to divorce.

After receiving the certificate, she moved to the Beicheng Villa.

Although this marriage was not what she had wished for, deep down in her heart, she still had some expectations.

That was why she had neatly folded and put away the clothes from their wedding day.

Now, Chu Li was wearing this outfit to get a divorce.

Things remained, but people had changed.

She quickly gathered those chaotic thoughts, lowered her eyes, and said indifferently, "Let's go."

A flash of disappointment crossed Chu Li's eyes, followed by a sense of bitterness.

He had specifically worn this white shirt, thinking it might be a way to hold on...

For the divorce registration, a divorce agreement signed by both parties was required.

Chu Li had not signed the previous two copies, so he could not produce one at this moment.

But Qin Xingwan had brought one.

She placed the divorce agreement in front of him: "Take a look, if there are no issues, sign it."

Chu Li's hand trembled slightly as he held the pen.

Qin Xingwan pretended not to see the redness in the corners of his eyes; late-coming affection was cheaper than grass, and she no longer needed it.

"My condition remains the same: I will take the Twenty-Four Solar Terms Perfume, and I don't want anything else."

They did not cherish it, so she would cherish it herself.

Chu Li closed the agreement and said softly, "I will have my lawyer draft a new divorce agreement; you will not receive any less than what is rightfully yours."

This meant he was willing to give her half of his assets.

Qin Xingwan spread the agreement open again, "No need, please sign it as soon as possible."

She wanted nothing.

She only wanted a divorce.

There was a glimmer of light in Chu Li's eyes, but in the end, he signed his name.

Qin Xingwan breathed a sigh of relief, signed her own name, and handed the agreement to the staff member.

Soon, the staff member informed them that if both parties had no objections after one month, they could come to collect their divorce certificates.

Qin Xingwan hated this rule; after all, in a month's time, if Chu Li did not want to divorce, he could use any excuse to refuse to pick up the divorce certificate.

Or, he could simply not show up.

Fortunately, Old Master Chu had personally stepped in this time, so he would have no choice in the matter.

Thinking of this, she felt much more relaxed and turned to leave.

Chu Li caught up and grabbed her, his fingers gently brushing the injury on her cheek.

After a night, the wound was still shocking.

His mother had always been shrewish and unreasonable.

Fortunately, he had asked the doctor, and she would not be left with a scar on her face.

Qin Xingwan swatted his hand away and said coldly, "We are already divorced, President Chu, please conduct yourself with dignity."

A sense of estrangement washed over them.