Chairman Husband, Too Boorish - 182

Chapter 182 : Divorce, Signing, Isn't About Fear of Making Mistakes, It's About Not Wanting to Sign

Before the words were even finished, Qin Mu Hua suddenly nudged Yan Liang, interrupting her. Her gaze passed through Yan Liang to the man standing in the doorway, and she smiled politely, "... Xi Cheng is here."

Yan Liang stiffened, somewhat awkwardly releasing Qin Mu Hua. After a pause, she slowly turned around—

She thought her mother knew nothing, so she didn't want to show anything in front of her. Her mother had only just recovered, and Yan Liang didn't want her to worry.

"Xi Cheng, come in."

Qin Mu Hua greeted Liang Xi Cheng.

A flicker of resistance flashed in Yan Liang's eyes, which Liang Xi Cheng took in. For a moment, his heart ached, but his deep features remained impassive. He simply said to Qin Mu Hua, "I know Yan Liang is here; I want to say a few words to her."

Qin Mu Hua knew perfectly well that the two children had some conflict, and she roughly knew what it was about. However, she had witnessed Liang Xi Cheng's character firsthand. This man was a very responsible one. In the five months Yan Liang had been away, he had treated her like an elder. As the heir to the prestigious Liang family, what had she done to deserve this? Even burdened with too many grudges, she didn't want the tragedy of the previous generation to continue in these children's lives.

Therefore, Qin Mu Hua, this gentle and refined woman, had always been able to understand, and now, she could also understand Lu.

“Go ahead, Yan Liang. I’ve packed my things. I’ll wait for you here. You and Xi Cheng go outside and talk.” Yan Liang didn’t want to say anything to Liang Xi Cheng in front of her mother. She nodded and followed Liang Xi Cheng out.

Liang Xi Cheng took her directly to the parking lot. He opened the passenger door, turned around, and gestured for her to get in.

Yan Liang hesitated for a moment, but ultimately chose to obediently get in the car. Regardless of what he wanted to say, she had things to clarify with him.

Despite all the resentment, deep down, this man was still someone she trusted. So, while she felt uncomfortable being alone with him in his car, she didn’t feel any fear.

Liang Xi Cheng walked around the front of the car, got in, and didn't start the engine. As he closed the door, he silently lowered the center console as well. The small car was instantly filled with their scents—so many subtle emotions, yet Liang Xi Cheng was so reluctant to leave. He felt that at this moment, being so close to her, he could almost smell her fragrance, that scent that stirred his desire.

Liang Xi Cheng turned to look at her, noticing her discomfort. Those feelings of resistance emanated from her. He wanted to step forward and pull her into his arms, but he knew he couldn't right now. He could only desperately restrain himself.

He spoke first, "When did you get back?"

Yan Liang forced a smile, replying emotionlessly, "Didn't you always know? Why are you asking when you already know?"

If he didn't know, how could it be such a coincidence that she came to the hospital?

A hint of embarrassment flashed in Liang Xi Cheng's eyes. Perhaps, in the whole world, there was only one woman who, with just one tone and one sentence, could make him feel utterly helpless and embarrassed.

"Yan Liang, I want to talk to you properly. Maybe we'll never have the chance again. This time, can you put away all your sharpness? Isn't what we shared enough for you to talk to me calmly?"

"... It's precisely because of everything we once had that parting feels so painful." Yan Liang subconsciously clenched her fingers on her knees, her knuckles turning white. Her voice was low and somewhat hoarse.

Lin You Jia sang a song called "Heartache" ...

—We once loved each other, and the thought of it makes my heart ache.

—I once had you, and it truly makes my heart ache.

The cruelest thing in the world isn't never meeting the one you love, but meeting them and ultimately missing them …

Liang Xi Cheng's breath hitched, his hand on the steering wheel twitched slightly. His deep gaze remained fixed on the woman beside him, wishing he could etch her entire being into his being, if only he could … He remembered her crouching on the empty roadside in England, sobbing uncontrollably, and his heart ached with sharp, stabbing pains.

—It was because of everything they once shared that parting was so painful.

She was sad too, he knew. Therefore, he felt even more pain, yet he didn't know what the best course of action was.

"... I know you told me you didn't want to see me again, but this is the last time. I'm showing up in front of you because I want to talk to you properly. You don't have to say anything, just listen to me—Yanliang, you can continue on SGA in UK."

"Don't worry, I promised you, and I will do it. From the moment you get off the car, I won't appear in front of you unless you need me, so you don't need to avoid me at all."

Yan Liang nodded. "I did consider giving up on the SGA, but now I understand it's unnecessary. So I will take responsibility for my future and won't give up my studies. I will graduate."

Hearing her say this, Liang Xi Cheng clearly felt a weight lifted from his heart.

He had known about her actions these past few days, that she had approached her advisor wanting to take a leave of absence. He had always wanted what was best for her, truly wanted what was best for her. She had once told him that architectural design was a dream for her, and he wanted her to perfectly fulfill that dream.

Being able to live in one's own dream is a very happy thing.

He knew that what he could do for her in the future was now "limited," so he wanted to pave every path for her even more.

"... Although your mother's health has almost recovered, she has still had surgery. Dr. Smith explained that there might be some aftereffects for several years after the surgery, so it's best for her to stay in City A. I've prepared an apartment for you in a convenient commercial area ..."

"I don't need it," Yan Liang frowned, interrupting him.

Liang Xi Cheng's brows furrowed even more deeply than hers. Finally, he reached out and grasped her soft hand. Yan Liang instinctively struggled. Liang Xi Cheng's adam's apple bobbed, his dark eyes revealing a hint of pain, though this was concealed by bloodshot veins.

His voice was low and menacing. "Why don't you need it? This is what you deserve, Yan Liang. You are still my wife, Liang Xi Cheng's wife. At least, until now, you are my wife! Everything I've done for you is what you deserve. A house is nothing, consider it compensation. If you accept it, I'll feel a little better ..."

"I don't want to accept it!" Yan Liang abruptly looked up, meeting his burning gaze. Her eyes flickered as she said, word by word, "Why should I accept it? I'm your wife, we're getting a divorce, so you're giving me a house? Mr. Liang, you're very generous, I know you have a lot of money, one house or ten houses, it really doesn't mean much to you ... But for me, it's really unnecessary. I won't take a single penny from you in our divorce, nor will I take any of your property."

"You don't need to feel any burden, nor do you need to feel ... guilty. This divorce is my decision. I know you have your difficulties, and I can't understand them, I can't accept your helplessness, so I can only choose to turn around and leave. Between us ... to be fair, it's not a matter of who betrayed whom, it's just that we both held onto things we didn't want to give up. For you, it might be family, kinship, and power; for me, I know best what it is in my heart.”

So, don't try to compensate me with houses. It will make me feel that I was just a woman to you, the simplest woman, a passerby.

Although, this has already become a fact.

“Then what do you want from me? I don't know what else I can do for you …”

“You don't need to do anything for me.”

Yan Liang pushed his hand away, took out the divorce agreement from her bag, and her name—Bai Yan Liang—was already signed on it.

She remembered the day she had her lawyer draft the divorce agreement. Each clause, though seemingly unremarkable, was read with meticulous care. When she finally signed it, she recalled the day she married him, when he took her to the Civil Affairs Bureau to register their marriage.

Back then, it was also the three characters "Bai Yan Liang," and when she signed, her eyes were brimming with tears. How happy she was then? Each stroke, like a primary school student learning to write their own name, was filled with trepidation, fear of making a mistake, fear of writing it poorly, writing with such care …

And now, with the same stroke, the happiness of the past had turned into the most painful feeling. It wasn't the fear of making a mistake, nor the fear of writing it badly, but the unwillingness to continue, yet the inability to write …

So, why bring up the happiness that once existed? Bringing it up felt like her heart was being squeezed tightly, the pain unbearable, making it hard to breathe. Who would give her a pure … clean air?

“Sign here, then let me leave. Keep your promise to me today: as long as I don't look for you, you can't appear before me.”

She spoke each word slowly, deeply, with a tremor in her voice. She couldn't control herself. “This is the best thing you can do for me, and the thing I want you to do for me. Xi Cheng …”

As she uttered those two words, Yan Liang's nose stung. She truly couldn't control herself. By the time she realized what was happening, tears were already streaming down her cheeks. She awkwardly reached out to wipe them away, but suddenly her body was gripped tightly. She let out a soft “Mmm,” but the gasp was barely in her throat before her lips were sealed with a kiss.

“…”

Liang Xi Cheng gripped the back of her neck with one hand and her waist with the other, pressing her forcefully into his arms and kissing her lips fiercely.

The taste of her lips was familiar to him, something he craved, a feeling so intense it gave him. He knew she would be unhappy with his touch, but he couldn't control himself; he wanted to kiss her, greedily inhaling her scent.

The man's kiss was too forceful and domineering. Yan Liang felt herself being pressed against the car seat. The man's tall frame pressed against her repeatedly. Despite the cramped space, he seemed completely at ease. The hand that had been around her waist slowly moved up, expertly grasping one of her soft breasts and gently squeezing it.

"...Mmm."

She struggled to breathe for a long time, feeling as if all the air in her lungs was being squeezed out. Liang Xi Cheng, however, felt it still wasn't enough, never enough. He wanted her, wanted to crush her and meld her into his very bones. How could that be enough?

... If time could truly stop at this moment, it wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Because this time, he truly let go. Perhaps there would never be another chance.

This thought, desperately growing in his mind, made him even more relentless. Taking advantage of the instant Yan Liang parted her lips to breathe, his nimble tongue invaded, sweeping across her inner walls, causing her entire body to tremble uncontrollably …

Chapter 181        |        TOC        |        Chapter 183