"Don't mind him. Just sign the documents," Qiao Yichen said softly, though the storm brewing in his chest was far from calm. He placed the divorce papers gently in front of Jing Hua, masking his pain behind that cold, unreadable expression he wore so often these days.
He rose from the seat, motioning silently to Zhu Ji. His assistant, ever silent and ever watching, gave one last glance at the woman who had once been the light of his boss's life. Zhu Ji felt a bitterness on his tongue he didn't dare voice.
If only she hadn't gotten tangled up with those vultures, he thought, his gaze full of disdain. Boss used to laugh. He used to be alive. Now he's just a ghost in an expensive suit.
Jing Hua sat still, frozen in place. Her hands trembled as she reached for the folder. Each page revealed another cut, another betrayal. The words blurred as tears began to pool in her eyes.
Photos. Voice recordings. Transfers. Messages.
Proof.
Feng Yuan's words echoed in her head, louder now than they had been in the cafe. Louder than her denial. Louder than her pride.
Her heart pounded violently as her brain finally connected all the dots she'd refused to see. Her best friend. Her first love. Her past. Her choices.
All of it—a setup.
Mom... Dad... Brothers... Her vision blurred. It was all my fault.
The weight of realization crashed over her like an avalanche. Her breath hitched, a sob clawing its way out of her throat.
"Mom, Dad, I'm sorry... I should have trusted you. I should have believed you... I was so stupid," she murmured, voice cracking as hot tears fell onto the divorce papers.
Qiao Yichen paused at the doorway.
He looked back.
And what he saw tore through every shield he'd ever built around his heart.
Jing Hua, trembling, broken, crying without shame.
He had seen her cry before—out of frustration, anger, confusion—but never like this. Never with such raw regret and pain.
His fingers twitched by his side. Every instinct screamed at him to go to her. To wipe her tears. To hold her. To lie and say it would all be okay.
But he didn't move.
Because he knew.
It wouldn't be.
Not now.
Not yet.
He turned and left.
---
Jing Hua slowly gathered her things, numb, lost. Her heart felt like it had been carved out and left bleeding on the marble floor. The evidence still sat on the table, stained with her tears. She didn't have the strength to pick it up.
Just as she turned to leave, her phone buzzed in her bag.
Beep... Beep...
She didn't want to answer. She didn't want to hear another voice. But something in her—some dark, broken curiosity—made her slide her thumb across the screen.
"Oh, Xiao Hua," came Pei Ming's voice, sugar-laced and venomous. "You really went ahead and transferred the company. How sweet of you. I thought I'd have to push harder, but you made it easy."
Jing Hua gripped the phone tighter, her fingers white with pressure.
Pei Ming giggled. In the background, unmistakable moans and groans.
"I would have invited you to our little celebration, but... you wouldn't have fit in," she said with mock pity.
"You bastards," Jing Hua whispered. Her voice was hollow, broken.
"Oh, come now. Don't be rude. Your dead parents wouldn't approve," Pei Ming sneered.
Jing Hua felt her legs give way. She sank into the chair, breath caught in her throat.
"And those pills you gave Qiao Yichen?" Pei Ming paused, letting the silence sink in. "They weren't sleeping pills. They were the Mysterious Healer's newest creation. A slow, almost untraceable poison."
Jing Hua's eyes widened in horror.
"He's been dying... every day... slowly... painfully. And you didn't even know. Because you were too busy hating him."
"No..." Jing Hua choked out.
"Oh yes," Pei Ming laughed. "He lost everything because of you. The company—gone. The shares—sold. And you delivered the confidential documents right to their rival's doorstep. All with that pretty signature of yours."
In the background, Xiang Ye moaned her name. Pei Ming moaned louder.
"Honestly, if he hadn't been so hopelessly obsessed with you, I might've taken him for myself," she said, almost thoughtfully.
"You—you used me..." Jing Hua whispered.
"Used you? Sweetheart, we built our future on your stupidity. And speaking of the future... say hi to your parents in hell. We'll join you eventually. But not before we enjoy what you left behind."
Click.
The call ended.
Jing Hua stared at her screen, then at the rain-streaked window.
She felt hollow.
Like the universe had crumbled inside her chest.
But even in that black void, something stirred.
Not hope.
Not yet.
But rage.
And the first ember of the woman she would soon become.
---