The wealthy military officer spoils his wife excessively

She stood there like a fool, staring at the empty room. Nothing had changed; it was still as cold and deserted as ever.

He can't possibly come back!

Give up!

She didn't know how long she had stood there. Xiao Ai made her bed and tidied the room, while she just stood there, a little dazed. A monotonous sound kept ringing, and it took her a while to remember it was the phone. Her mind seemed to have gone blank. Her cell phone—where was it? It kept ringing, even Xiao Ai, who was doing her work, stopped and looked at her, saying, "Why aren't you answering the phone?"

She then realized, oh, the phone was in her bag, and her bag was hanging on her hand.

She hurriedly opened her bag, and with a clatter, the small items she carried inside fell out. She threw the bag on the ground, squatted down, and groped around, finally finding her constantly vibrating phone among her wallet and cosmetics.

"Susu? Why did it take you so long to answer?"

It's Xiang Ru...

Her elbow, which was bracing herself on the cold wooden floor, buckled, and her whole body slid down. Xiao Ai was startled, but she managed to steady herself, took a breath, and said into the phone, "Mom, I couldn't find my phone just now, what happened?"

Xiao Ai was relieved to hear that there was nothing unusual about the sound.

"Your father's surgery was a success."

"Oh...that's a good thing."

"Are you still in Beijing? Are you busy with work? Come back for dinner if you have time. Mom will cook your favorite sweet and sour pork."

"We'll see. I've been busy filming lately, and I don't know when I'll be able to go back."

"Sigh, work is important, but don't neglect your health. I saw in the weather forecast that another cold front is coming. Even though it's warm in the south, don't be tempted to stay warm without wearing clothes. That damp weather is the easiest way to catch a cold."

"I know."

"Good to know, don't think Mom is nagging..."

"Okay, Mom, I'm going in to get my makeup done. I'll hang up now."

She hung up hastily, afraid that if she continued, she would choke up. Looking up, she saw Xiao Ai gazing at her with pity and deep emotion. She frowned. What was there to pity about? She'd only twisted her ankle; who doesn't bump and bruise themselves while filming? Yes, who doesn't bump and bruise themselves sometimes?

Xiao Ai helped her settle into bed and said, "You should sleep for a while. I'll come back for dinner. I have something to do and need to go back to the company now."

Suwen lay on her back on the bed, her eyes fixed on the ceiling. Xiao Ai knew she had heard everything, so she didn't say anything more and was about to turn and leave when Suwen suddenly spoke.

"Can you help me find a place to live?"

Xiao Ai was taken aback, wondering why she needed to find a new place when she was living comfortably. However, since the house belonged to Lu Zheng, she probably knew the two of them had just had a fight. So she said, "Okay, I'll wait until you come back from Hengdian..."

"Don't wait any longer, now, the sooner the better, I don't want to stay here anymore."

Even on the pillow and in the blanket, there was his scent. It seemed that as soon as she breathed, all those little things about him would come back, surrounding her, suffocating her, making it hard for her to breathe. That familiar, tearing pain returned, ripping at her internal organs, making her want to scream.

"..." Xiao Ai was stunned, looking at her in confusion. "The doctor said you shouldn't get out of bed while you're recovering. Anyway, you're going to Hengdian once you're healed..."

"No, I can't recover here..."

"But finding a place takes time, not to mention buying furniture, there's so much to prepare..."

It wasn't that she was being pretentious; she simply didn't want to force others to do things against their will, even if there was the slightest possible solution.

She closed her eyes, and Xiao Ai looked at her with heartache: "Then I'll go and think of a way."

The door is closed.

With a "click," she instinctively jumped as she sat on the bed.

She's now somewhat habitually afraid of hearing the door close.

She was alone in the room again, the emptiness unsettling. Her hands gripped the sheets tightly, she gritted her teeth, and gasped for breath, but it was no use. Just thinking of Lu Zheng turning and leaving made her chest tighten, making it hard to breathe. His image was everywhere: the pillow he had used, the chair he had sat in, his profile by the window, his gentle gaze looking down at her from the bedside…

She closed her eyes in despair, the pain radiating from her very core. She abruptly pulled the covers up, curling herself into a ball like a cocoon, writhing in sorrow. In the enclosed darkness, she couldn't see her own reflection, but she could feel his presence even more clearly—a faint scent of grass and wood, perhaps just the smell of detergent. She was truly at her wit's end. She clutched the pillow, repeatedly banging it against the cold headboard, the impact echoing loudly. Her head throbbed, her forehead numb, yet the pain persisted. Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer and burst into tears, burying the sheets in her mouth and biting down hard. Her sobs were distorted, twisted, suppressed, and labored, emanating from beneath the covers.

This pain... I never knew it felt like this. Just thinking about him brings me this kind of pain.

When Xiao Ai returned home that evening, she saw that Su Wen's room was still dark. She went to the kitchen to plate the takeout and keep it warm, then tried to wake Su Wen. Before she could even touch the light switch, a strange and shrill scream suddenly came from the bedroom, like the mournful wail of a ghost, a continuous, blood-curdling cry.

Xiao Ai was startled and stood frozen at the door. After a while, she hurriedly turned on the light switch, and the bedroom was suddenly bright. She then realized that the scream was coming from the blankets where the person was curled up in a ball on the bed.

Xiao Ai quickly went up to help her pull back the blanket, but found that Su Wen was clutching the corner of the blanket tightly in her hand, her knuckles were white. She was not awake at all with her eyes closed, but her brows were furrowed and her expression was painful. It was unclear whether she was having a nightmare or was having a nightmare. She kept rolling around in bed screaming.

Xiao Ai was stunned by the situation and didn't know what to do for a moment. It took her a while to come to her senses and pat Su Wen to wake her up.

Suwen suddenly opened her eyes, lying on the bed panting heavily, her forehead and face covered in sweat, her hair soaked and stuck to her face in a clump.

Her eyes were empty, and it took a long time before Xiao Ai's image appeared in them, but it was a blank and panicked look.

"You had a nightmare," Xiao Ai whispered to comfort her, still shaken by the memory of her screaming and rolling around earlier. She had never seen anyone have a nightmare like this before. It wasn't a dream at all; it felt like she had seen a ghost in real life.

Suwen, however, could only gasp for breath and try to calm herself down.

She dreamt again that Lu Zheng turned around in front of her without saying a word, and then the door clicked shut, and her heart was closed forever.

As her memories slowly returned, she finally realized that this was not a dream.

A flicker of despair crossed his eyes, along with a resigned self-mockery.

Seeing that she had calmed down, Xiao Ai said, "Get up and eat. You haven't eaten anything all day."

She nodded, and Xiao Ai brought in the food for her. She had no appetite, and everything tasted bitter. She forced herself to pick up her chopsticks, took a bite of each item, and then put them down.

Xiao Ai didn't insist. She quickly packed her things and helped her into the bathroom.

She had a nightmare and broke out in a sweat, so she had to change out of her pajamas. However, the doctor had told her that her feet shouldn't get wet, so she had to wipe herself down with a damp towel.

Xiao Ai stood guard outside the door, telling him to call her if he needed anything.

Su Wen leaned against the sink, washing herself in front of the mirror. She raised her hand, and the person in the mirror followed suit. But the movements were stiff and unfamiliar, as if it weren't her own. She remembered that night at the hotel, when Lu Zheng carefully wrapped her injured foot with a towel, jokingly saying he'd tie a bow for it next time. He kept handing her shampoo and shower gel, but blushed and lingered, unwilling to leave. Not for any other reason, but simply because he was afraid she couldn't manage on her own.

Her naked skin shivered in the cold air. She closed her eyes, recalling his warm fingertips gliding through her hair, down her neck, shoulders, and collarbone… She suddenly opened her eyes and threw the towel in her hand heavily at her reflection in the mirror. With a thud, the bottles and jars on the sink were knocked over. Xiao Ai, who was outside the door, asked, “What’s wrong?”

Her chest heaving, she took a deep breath and replied, "It's nothing, I just spilled some shower gel."

"You're not feeling well right now, so just apply some simple wipes for the next couple of days."

She didn't say anything more, changed into clean pajamas, and limped out on her own.

Xiao Ai made her a cup of hot milk, then, remembering her nightmare, she added a sleeping pill: "Get a good night's sleep. I'm leaving."

Suwen took the milk and drank it without saying a word.

The next day, Xiao Ai came to take care of her as usual. Su Wen was taking a nap when she opened the door and heard a series of ghostly wails coming from inside. She quickly dropped what she was holding and ran in. Sure enough, Su Wen was again lying on the bed with her eyes closed, tearing at the sheets and writhing in agony.

After finally shaking her awake, they both fell silent for a moment.

During lunch, Xiao Ai said, "I've found you a place. I just signed the contract with the landlord, but we still need to clean and prepare. You should be able to move in the day after tomorrow."

Suwen nodded. She knew that Xiao Ai had to go to work every day and take care of herself, which was very difficult for her: "Thank you for your hard work. Actually, with crutches, I can get up and get the takeout myself."

She wasn't completely unable to walk, but the doctor's assessment last time was too serious, and Xiao Ai was genuinely afraid she'd become disabled. The production team in Hengdian was pressing hard; filming had to start before the lead actress arrived. She just hoped Su Wen would recover quickly, whether it was her foot injury or her emotional distress, so that her assistant could have some peace of mind.

Suwen seemed to be in a much better mood today. After dinner, she went to the balcony with her cane to read for a while and bask in the sun. Before long, she fell asleep again.