Reveal
1425 Words
The corridor of the hospital was filled with a heavy atmosphere.
Lu Hanye arrived to find Ye’s mother sitting on a bench, her head lowered as she wiped away tears, with Duoduo lying beside her.
“Mom, what happened?”
Ye’s mother slowly lifted her head, her eyes red and swollen. “Do you know that if it weren’t for Duoduo today, your wife would have been gone?”
Lu Hanye’s eyes tightened.
“Duoduo ran two kilometers, pulling me to your house. Only then did I find out that Ruowan had collapsed on the ground, barely breathing…”
Ye’s mother, with a hunched back, stood up. “It’s already ten o’clock at night. As Ruowan’s husband, where have you been?!”
Lu Hanye’s throat tightened. “I was working late.”
Ye’s mother, suppressing her anger, asked, “What did you promise my husband before you married Ruowan? You said you would take good care of her. You know Ruowan has a heart condition, and you left her alone at home?”
Ye’s mother’s accusations pierced through Lu Hanye, leaving him speechless.
After sending Ye’s mother off.
Lu Hanye went to the hospital room and looked at Ye Ruowan lying pale on the bed, feeling a pang of guilt.
“I’ll have Aunt Zhang stay at home to take care of you from now on,” he said softly.
Since he had reservations about outsiders, they had only hired a temporary maid to clean the house.
Ye Ruowan’s mind was still on the call from that night. Looking at Lu Hanye’s familiar face, she suddenly asked, “Brother Han, do you hate me?”
After eight years of marriage, she hadn’t given him a child.
Today, Ye Ruowan finally understood the resentment he had been hiding.
The sudden question left Lu Hanye momentarily stunned.
“What nonsense are you talking about? How could I hate you?”
Ye Ruowan’s eyelashes drooped slightly. “Brother Han, do you remember what I said before we got married?”
Before Lu Hanye could respond, Ye Ruowan continued, “If you don’t like me anymore, you can tell me, and I will let you go.”
The phrase “I will let you go” made Lu Hanye feel inexplicably flustered. He wrapped his arms around Ye Ruowan and said in a deep voice, “I was wrong today. Don’t be angry. I’ll spend more time with you from now on.”
Ye Ruowan didn’t like it when Lu Hanye apologized out of obligation.
She rested her head on his shoulder and murmured, “I really want to go back to when we first met…”
…
Whether it was out of guilt or a genuine desire to change, Lu Hanye started coming home early more often recently.
Even the rumors about him and Han Shuangshuang were clarified, and it felt like their home was returning to the way it used to be.
“This afternoon, I have a business trip to Seattle. Is there anything you want?” Lu Hanye, in a well-tailored suit, stood in front of a large mirror, looking tall and handsome.
Ye Ruowan was grooming Duoduo and shook her head. “No need. Just take care of yourself.”
Lu Hanye’s dark eyes grew dim, and he said no more. He changed to a lighter-colored tie and said goodbye to Ye Ruowan.
Watching the dark tie she had bought for him being replaced, Ye Ruowan fell into a daze…
Without a job, Ye Ruowan felt lonely at home.
Whenever Lu Hanye went on a business trip, he would be gone for one or two months, and apart from occasional updates, they had no other communication.
That night.
Outside, heavy rain poured down.
Before going to bed, Ye Ruowan received a call. “Mrs. Lu, I have a tip about your husband, Lu Hanye. I want twenty million.”
Having been in the entertainment industry for so many years, she was no stranger to paparazzi threats.
“What’s the tip?”
Soon, the information was sent to Ye Ruowan’s private email.
Ye Ruowan opened it, her heart tightening sharply.
The email contained photos of Lu Hanye and Han Shuangshuang—both at Seattle Airport, at a hospital, and at a hotel…
The man’s voice came through the phone.
“Twenty million. I want it by ten o’clock tomorrow morning, or else the trending news will show: Superstar Lu Hanye is preparing for pregnancy with new rising star Han Shuangshuang in Seattle…”
On the dimly lit balcony.
Ye Ruowan, draped in a trench coat, sat outside, her slender figure exposed to the cold rain. She seemed oblivious to the chill.
The rain had been falling all night, and Ye Ruowan had spent the entire night alone.
The next morning, she picked up her phone and called her agent, Zhao Fang.
“Zhao Jie, withdraw all the money from my account.”
After transferring the money to the reporter, Ye Ruowan leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes deeply.
In her dreams, she was back in the past, when Lu Hanye wore a white shirt and had a gentle, warm expression.
He held a bouquet of bright red roses and asked her, “Ruowan, will you be my girlfriend?”
Tears fell from the corners of Ye Ruowan’s eyes as she murmured, “I don’t want to…”
There are no walls that don’t let the wind through.
Although Ye Ruowan had bought out all the rumors about Lu Hanye and Han Shuangshuang, there were still many rumors circulating online.
That day, she wrote a single line on her long-unused Weibo account: “So love really does disappear.”
Soon, a flurry of hateful comments followed.
“Lu Hanye never really liked you, don’t be so self-delusional.”
“No man can stand a jealous woman like you.”
“…”
Ye Ruowan ignored the messages. She knew well that Lu Hanye once loved her, but that love had faded over time.
In the afternoon, Lu Hanye came back early, though he didn’t explain why.
As he handed her a luxurious gift, he asked nonchalantly, “What did you mean by what you wrote on Weibo?”
Ye Ruowan opened the gift box to find an expensive perfume inside.
But she never used perfume…
Ye Ruowan silently closed the lid and looked at his calm expression.
“It’s just something I felt.”
She suddenly remembered the times in college when she saw Lu Hanye getting too close to a female student. His nervous explanations back then were completely different from his current demeanor.
Lu Hanye seemed to relax, “You’re a public figure, so try not to make such statements.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t drag you down.”
Ye Ruowan put the gift box aside and, under Lu Hanye’s watchful eyes, opened the drawer of the coffee table. She took out the household registration book, ID card, marriage certificate, and other documents she had prepared, and placed them in front of him.
“Let’s go. The Civil Affairs Bureau is still open.”
Lu Hanye’s eyes widened in shock. “What do you mean?”
Ye Ruowan calmly looked at him. “It means nothing. I’m just letting you go.”
With that, she stood up and walked towards the door.
Lu Hanye grabbed her wrist tightly, veins bulging on his forehead.
“Do you have to be so unreasonable?”
After four years of dating and eight years of marriage, she had never mentioned breaking up or getting divorced. What had happened in these past few days?
“Is it because I fired you? Fine, I’ll let you return to the company and start singing again. Whatever you want to do, I agree to it.” Lu Hanye thought about what he had done in recent days and could only come up with these concessions.
“You allowing me…”
The corners of Ye Ruowan’s eyes reddened. She slowly pried Lu Hanye’s hand away. “Brother Han, I’m a person, not your possession. Please remember, I don’t need your permission to do anything.”
“I’m asking you because I respect you.”
Lu Hanye was caught off guard by her words.
He frowned, “Do you really want a divorce?”
Ye Ruowan didn’t answer.
At that moment, Lu Hanye was frustrated. He tugged at his collar. “Don’t forget, we have a pact: the one who brings up the divorce first will leave with nothing.”
- Writer
