She used to throw herself at him so shamelessly, so desperately.
And now, all she felt was regret—deep, bone-crushing regret.
"I'll never do it again—" Hailey Tang suddenly shoved him away, scrambling back onto the bed, putting as much distance between them as she could. Her voice trembled with a mix of fury and humiliation. "From now on, I won't have any more thoughts about you. I won't cling to you, I won't chase you, and I definitely won't love you anymore!"
Her sudden outburst caught Ethan Yu completely off guard.
His expression darkened instantly, the air around him dropping several degrees.
There was no mistaking it—Ethan was livid.
Just imagine—being the center of someone's world, having them love you so obsessively that every breath they took revolved around you… and then one day, that same person turns around and looks at you like you're dirt under their shoe.
Like you're disgusting. Like you're a pest.
For a man like Ethan Yu, whose pride mattered more than anything in the world, this was the ultimate slap in the face.
It didn't even matter if he loved her or not. That wasn't the point.
What mattered was that someone had once begged to be with him—only to now look at him like he was repulsive.
How was a man like him supposed to swallow that?
"Hailey Tang—" he growled, his voice low and dangerous, each syllable laced with venom. "You have no idea how much I want to strangle you right now."
He wasn't just saying that. He meant it.
He'd wanted to do it before. And now? He wanted it even more.
Hailey had a gift—she could make him so furious, he could barely see straight.
The killing intent in his eyes was real, and Hailey felt it. For a second, she was overwhelmed—not with fear, but with sorrow.
A heavy, bitter sorrow for her past self.
"Ethan Yu," she said, her voice hoarse with emotion, "I was wrong back then. I should've never married you. We should've never happened. Let's not keep making the same mistakes. Let's just… divorce. Please."
Ethan suddenly stood up, the chair behind him crashing to the floor as he kicked it aside with explosive force.
Hailey flinched instinctively, caught off guard by his violent reaction.
His eyes burned with icy fury. "I'll gladly do you the favor of getting out of my life. Tomorrow, the divorce papers will be delivered to you. Just sign them and disappear."
With that, he spun on his heel and stormed out of the room.
Hailey sat frozen for a moment, stunned.
Then, slowly, the words sank in.
He agreed.
He was actually going to divorce her. By tomorrow.
She couldn't help it—her lips curved upward into a smile, and the smile quickly turned into a quiet, almost giddy laugh.
Finally.
Freedom. A new beginning. A brand-new life.
What she'd longed for was about to be real.
If Ethan had seen the way she smiled just now, he really might have strangled her.
Ethan left the hospital in a storm of cold rage. With that kind of temper, there was no way he'd stick around.
Meanwhile, Hailey called Auntie Zhang, asking her to bring over a set of comfortable clothes and help her out of the hospital.
Auntie Zhang arrived shortly, eyes full of concern. "Miss, what on earth happened? How did you get hurt?"
Hailey smiled and gave her a simplified version of the chaos from last night.
But Auntie Zhang noticed something strange—Hailey looked… happy. Genuinely happy.
She immediately jumped to conclusions, smiling knowingly. "Let me guess—did the young master panic over you last night? Is that why you're so happy?"
"No," Hailey said firmly. "This has nothing to do with him."
Auntie Zhang blinked, surprised. "Then what's got you in such a good mood?"
Hailey just kept smiling and didn't answer.
There was no way she could tell her housekeeper she was thrilled about getting divorced. The poor woman would probably think she'd gone insane.
After changing into the fresh clothes Auntie Zhang had brought, they were just about to leave the room when a nurse came by.
"Mrs. Yu," she said politely, "Miss Lin from the next room just regained consciousness."
Hailey nodded. "I'll go see her."
"You should rest," Auntie Zhang quickly said. "You're still hurt. Let me go instead."
Truth be told, Hailey didn't really want to see Lin Xiner either. That kind of delicate, manipulative energy was exactly the kind she didn't need in her life anymore.
"Alright," she agreed. "Just let her know I'm grateful for what she did yesterday."
"Got it."
Auntie Zhang walked over to the room next door.
Inside, Lin Xiner lay weakly on the hospital bed, her face pale and fragile, the very image of a helpless, pitiful beauty.
She was like some tragic heroine from a period drama, the kind who inspired sympathy just by existing.
Hearing footsteps approach, her eyes immediately lit up with expectation. But when she saw it was just the housekeeper, the spark dimmed.
Disappointment flickered across her face, but she quickly masked it.
Auntie Zhang caught that subtle shift and scoffed internally.
What, did she think Ethan was coming to see her?
Fox spirit.
Too bad for her, the young master was long gone. Not only had he not visited, but he'd missed out on seeing this whole carefully crafted, damsel-in-distress performance.
What a waste of effort!