After eight years of coldness, you're asking for a divorce? I'm signing the papers, what&#

Chapter 351 Mutual Consent

The room was completely silent.

I don't know how much time has passed.

Rong Shu spoke, her voice calm and utterly still, "Sheng Tingchen, do you know why I returned to China back then?"

Sheng Tingchen stood still, his gaze fixed on her slender back, his thin lips pressed tightly together, without responding.

"For five years, you've been dragging your feet on getting a divorce. I know very well that even if we go to court, I might not be able to get a divorce." Rong Shu's voice remained calm, but it concealed a hint of barely perceptible sorrow. "I thought I might as well take this opportunity to get revenge on you and let you taste the suffering I've endured. But you're so smart, how could you not guess what I was thinking? So you cooperated with me, putting on a show of being a loving couple, feigning affection. You wanted me to be immersed in this illusory relationship, immersed in the seemingly happy family life with Meimei, so that I would willingly stay by your side."

She paused, then suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly, saying, "But looking back now, I really overestimated myself. I didn't have that ability. I was just consciously struggling in pain. In your heart, I'm probably just as ridiculous as I was five years ago."

Sheng Tingchen had quietly walked up behind her without her noticing. He stretched out his arms and pulled her tightly into his embrace, gently resting his chin on the top of her head. His deep, magnetic voice was slightly hoarse as he said, "You don't need to think of me as all-powerful. I'm just a normal man. With your beauty and talent, who wouldn't be tempted? I'm no exception. So it's not all pretense. After all, we have such a smart and lovely daughter, and it's true that I want to be with you as she grows up."

As they were talking.

His large hand gently grasped her tightly clenched fingers, his fingertips caressing her slightly cool fingertips. Then he slowly buried his face in her neck, his warm breath falling on her delicate skin, carrying a hint of seduction, and said, "We have a long future ahead of us. I will make it up to you. All the pain from the past will be in the past."

His voice, deep and husky, seemed to possess an alluring, magical quality that soothed her.

Rong Shu listened to the man's words, but her eyes remained completely unmoved.

The man tightened his grip on her.

suddenly.

He swept the woman up in his arms and placed her on the sofa. He braced his hands on the back of the sofa, his tall figure exuding a strong and domineering masculine aura that completely enveloped the woman beneath him.

Looking down at the woman, her beautiful eyes were misty with the effects of the alcohol, which made her usually cool eyes seem a little softer, but deep down, there was still a blank indifference.

He slowly withdrew one hand, his thumb gently caressing the woman's soft lips. The tender, delicate touch sent a jolt through him, like a faint electric current, coursing along the nerves in his arm and instantly spreading throughout his body. Sheng Tingchen's eyes grew deeper and deeper, dark as a bottomless pool.

"You know what? When I first saw you, you really attracted me. You came back to me, but I still couldn't have you. You successfully made me feel pain I had never felt before. The more you can't have something, the more you want it. So the best way to conquer a man is not necessarily through your mind, but through physical attraction."

Rong Shu looked at the man in front of her. "So you want to do it with me?"

Sheng Tingchen gazed intently at the woman beneath him and said, "I really want you, but I won't force you. This kind of thing requires mutual consent."

A slight sneer appeared on Rong Shu's lips. "Unfortunately, I can't be with you."

"I know, but it's okay, we can take it slow."

He withdrew his hand, sat down next to Rong Shu, reached out and took her hand, gently stroking the back of her hand with his fingertips.

He asked softly, "Back to Beijing tomorrow?"

Rong Shu remained silent.

The space fell silent again.

It was so quiet that it was as if the only sound was each other's breathing.

Silence lasted for an unknown amount of time.

Sheng Tingchen glanced at the dining table and said, "The food's getting cold. Would you like to eat out?"

Rong Shu withdrew her hand and said, "Go back!"

Sheng Tingchen's gaze fell on his empty hands. He didn't insist on staying, and looked at her, saying, "Alright, get some rest early tonight, and don't overthink things."

Then.

He got up and walked towards the door, opened it and left. When he got downstairs, he met Jiang Huaixu coming in from outside the lobby. Jiang Huaixu also saw him.

The moment their eyes met, Sheng Tingchen looked away, walked straight past him, and left the hotel.

Jiang Huaixu paused for a moment before walking towards the elevator.

Jiang Huaixu walked to the door of Rong Shu's room. The staff were clearing away the food plates as they came out of the room. Looking at the food on the plates, it was clear that very little had been eaten.

He stood at the door and knocked gently.

When Rong Shu saw the person who came in, she composed herself and said, "Professor, are you done with your work?"

His gaze fell on her, scrutinizing her. Although she concealed it well, the weariness in her eyes was impossible to hide—not physical weariness, but mental weariness.

"No appetite? You're eating so little?"

Rong Shu smiled and said, "I'm not really hungry."

Jiang Huaixu sat on the single sofa beside her, staring intently at her. "What's wrong?"

Rong Shu didn't really want to talk about it, but when she met Jiang Huaixu's gaze, she knew that lying wouldn't do any good. She helplessly curled her lips and said, "It's nothing, I just suddenly feel that my life is a bit too ridiculous, and I feel pretty bad."

Jiang Huaixu slowly said, "Whose life is always wonderful and smooth sailing? The margin for error in a few decades of life is not as low as we think. It's just like throwing a few stones into the water. After the ripples subside, everything will return to its original state. As long as you let it sink quietly to the bottom, it will naturally fade away over time. If you pick it up and throw it back in again and again, it will inevitably be turbulent. So the reason why people suffer is because they are too attached. The biggest lesson in life is to learn how to let go. After letting go, everything will naturally return to peace."

The man's slow, powerful voice seeped into my heart like a gentle stream.

Rong Shu lowered her eyes and chuckled, "Professor, saying that makes me feel much better."

Jiang Huaixu smiled slightly. "It's good that it went smoothly. There's still a long time tonight, so it's best to eat something so you don't get hungry later."

Rong Shu hummed in agreement.

The two went downstairs to the restaurant and had something to eat.

After returning.

Rong Shu went to bed early.

The flight is at 10:30 the next morning.

I left home at eight o'clock.

Jiang Huaixu escorted her downstairs.

I originally planned to take her to the airport.

Unexpectedly, when Sheng Tingchen arrived at the hotel, he was carrying two boxes of pastries and walked towards Rong Shu.

Rong Shu looked at him.