Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Su Hua hadn’t slept well at her maternal grandfather’s old home last night. Tonight, after Gu Beixian put her through quite a bit, she fell into an unusually deep sleep.

She slept straight through until morning, so worn out she didn’t even have the energy for a nightmare.

When she didn’t have that nightmare from thirteen years ago, she wouldn’t talk in her sleep-much less call out “Ay Yao” in a dream.

Early the next morning, she opened her eyes and glanced to her side. Gu Beixian had already gotten up.

Careful not to aggravate her injured hand, she dressed and got out of bed.

In the bathroom, she found he’d even squeezed out her toothpaste for her.

She smiled, picked up her toothbrush, and slowly began to brush.

After washing up, Su Hua held the railing and went downstairs.

Gu Beixian was carrying the finished breakfast over and setting it on the table.

Seeing her, his brows and eyes softened into a handsome smile, practically glowing as he called to her, “Come eat. It’s all things you like.” He looked to be in an excellent mood.

He was strikingly good-looking-features so perfect they seemed carved. With sharp brows and star-bright eyes, when the corner of his lips lifted into a smile, there was both a lingering tenderness and a hint of carefree unruliness. It was enough to make anyone’s heart unsteady.

Su Hua couldn’t help smiling too. “Why didn’t you wake me? I could’ve made breakfast.”

“Your hand isn’t healed yet. Besides, it’s not like I can’t cook. It was nothing.”

Su Hua walked over and sat down. Gu Beixian handed her a spoon.

Breakfast was lavish, a mix of Chinese and Western: fried eggs, pan-seared steak, salmon, tiramisu, toasted bread-there was even eight-treasure porridge-and a plate of cut fruit.

Su Hua took small sips of the porridge. It was cooked well, soft and comforting.

Then Gu Beixian said, “Su Hua, let’s have a child. If you get pregnant, we won’t divorce.”

Su Hua’s hand paused midair around the spoon. She hadn’t expected that.

He’d been the one insisting on contraception. He’d been the one who brought up divorce. And now, all of a sudden, he wanted a child-and he didn’t want to divorce.

After a moment of silence, Su Hua slowly lifted her head and looked at him. Very seriously, she asked, “Can you keep your distance from Chu Suosuo in the future?”

Gu Beixian’s gaze stalled slightly. After a short pause, he said, “She has severe depression, and it has something to do with me. I asked the doctor-emotions are crucial with that condition. If she spirals for even a moment, she could take her own life. And besides, the Gu Family and the Chu Family do business together. We’re in the same city. We’re going to run into each other.”

He’d said a lot, but the answer was only two words: he couldn’t.

Su Hua gave a self-mocking smile. Lowering her lashes, she stared at the porridge in her bowl and said softly, “I can endure almost anything. The one thing I can’t endure is sharing my husband with another woman. I really… I’m not as big-hearted as you think. Sorry.”

Gu Beixian paused, then said, “To me, she’s about the same as Nanyin.”

“Nanyin doesn’t call you in the middle of the night every day and summon you over. She also doesn’t cling to you and let you hold her.”

Gu Beixian lifted his cup and took a sip of water, his tone extremely flat. “There’s no such thing as a perfect marriage. Most couples are just me putting up with you, you putting up with me-compromising with each other.”

Su Hua felt like there was something else buried in his words.

She turned it over in her mind for a long time before she finally understood the implication.

Taking a deep breath, she said, “Ah Yao has been gone for a long time. You don’t need to ‘put up’ with anything. And I don’t want to put up with Chu Suosuo either.”

A cold hint of a smile seeped onto Gu Beixian’s lips. His eyes darkened as he stared at her for a long time, then said in a tone that was hard to read, “Is that so?”

Su Hua didn’t answer. She lowered her head and continued drinking her porridge.

If she looked up again, it would become a fight. She didn’t want to fight with him.

Fighting hurt feelings too much. Their marriage was already hanging by a thread-if they kept arguing, it would break even faster.

Even now, she still loved him.

In all her life, she’d never loved anyone this much.

She was slow to warm up; it was hard for her to fall in love. But once she did, it was even harder to pull herself out.

After breakfast, Su Hua stood to clear the dishes.

Gu Beixian pressed down on her hand. “Let Aunt Liu and the hourly cleaner deal with it later. If you want to stay home and read, then read. If you want to go out shopping, then go shopping.”

He took a card from his wallet and handed it to her. “Use my card.”

Su Hua didn’t take it. “I have money.”

Gu Beixian stuffed the card into her pocket. “The PIN is your birthday-618618. When you go out, call the driver to take you. Be careful on the road.”

“Okay.”

After Gu Beixian left, Su Hua also went out-to pick a birthday present for her mother-in-law, Qin Shu.

Qin Shu was a well-known wedding gown designer. She had her own namesake brand, Shu Qin. Her career had previously been centered in Paris, but this year she’d shifted her focus back to the domestic market.

Su Hua didn’t deal with her much. All she knew was that Qin Shu was elegant, cool-tempered, and a woman of few words.

She arrived at the Hermès boutique.
Su Hua walked inside to pick out a bag for Qin Shu.

She selected a size 30 Birkin in amber yellow. It cost over a hundred thousand yuan, but she also had to purchase an equivalent amount in accessories-things like silk scarves and throw pillows-to qualify for the purchase.

While she was making her selection, a sweet, cloying voice drifted from behind her. “Sister Su Hua, you’re here to pick out a bag too?”

Su Hua’s scalp prickled slightly. She turned around to see Chu Suosuo.

Chu Suosuo was decked out in designer labels and dripping with jewelry. Clutching an expensive crocodile-skin Birkin, she walked with a haughty swagger despite her delicate frame.

Su Hua gave a very faint hum of acknowledgment.

Chu Suosuo stuck to her like glue, leaning over to ask the sales associate, “Which one did Sister Su Hua pick?”

The associate picked up the amber yellow Birkin and said, “This one, Miss Chu.”

A flash of ridicule crossed Chu Suosuo’s eyes. Staring at the unbranded bag on Su Hua’s shoulder, she mocked, “Sister Su Hua, someone from a small mountain village like you might not understand luxury goods. To buy a bag here, you have to spend over a hundred thousand just to qualify. Do you even have that much?”

Su Hua’s gaze turned cold. “Of course I do.”

She wasn’t obsessed with luxury goods. The bag she was carrying was just something she’d grabbed on her way out; she couldn’t even remember the brand, only that it was convenient for carrying things.

However, whenever a holiday or special occasion came around, she would always choose gifts that Gu Nanyin and the Old Madam liked.

Gu Nanyin was particularly fond of Hermès bags, and Su Hua had gifted her several.

Chu Suosuo let out an “oh” and said snidely, “Sister Su Hua, you certainly don’t hold back when it comes to spending Beixian’s money.”

Su Hua smiled. “He’s my husband. I’ll spend it if I want to. I don’t think it’s any of your business, as an outsider, to tell me what to do.”

Chu Suosuo snorted. “Beixian and I were childhood sweethearts for over a decade. We grew up together and share so many memories. If we’re really talking about who the outsider is, it’s you. You probably didn’t know this, but my first Hermès bag was a gift from Beixian.”

Su Hua didn’t feel like wasting her breath. She picked out several silk scarves, accessories, an ashtray, and a blanket, rounding out the required hundred thousand yuan in additional purchases.

She pulled a card from her wallet and handed it to the associate. “Charge it.”

“Certainly, please wait a moment.” The associate took the card to the counter to process the payment.

Su Hua needed to sign, so she followed her over.

Chu Suosuo followed as well, curling her lip. “Is that Beixian’s card? You’re so desperate to stay with him just because you’re after his money, aren’t you?”

Su Hua’s expression remained calm as she said to the associate, “Could you please tell Miss Chu whose name is on this account?”

The associate smiled at Chu Suosuo and said, “Miss Chu, the name on this card is Su Hua. It belongs to Miss Su.”

Su Hua gave a nonchalant smile and asked unhurriedly, “What’s the remaining balance? Please check it for me.”

The associate stared at the computer and said respectfully, “Miss Su, the balance in your account is 156 million yuan.”

Chu Suosuo’s face changed colors instantly, turning from red to white. She remained speechless for a long time.

Su Hua stared at her face, her lips curling into a slight smirk.

She had never been one for vanity or competition, but using this method to deal with a snob like Chu Suosuo felt incredibly satisfying!

One hundred million of that balance was the breakup fee Gu Beixian had given her recently; the other fifty-six million was what he had given her in bits and pieces over the last three years.

Every time he lost his temper, he would compensate her with money. He was quite generous.

In the past, Su Hua had always resented him for trying to dismiss her with money. But today, she felt that this habit of throwing money around whenever things got tense was actually quite cool!

How much could the flowers and bags he sent Chu Suosuo possibly cost?

Every time he gave her a card or a check, the minimum amount was at least a million.

After the transaction was processed, Su Hua took the pen from the associate and signed her name elegantly.

The associate returned the card.

Su Hua held the bank card and waved it in front of Chu Suosuo’s eyes, mocking her quietly. “Miss Chu, I doubt you even have fifty million in your account. In the future, don’t use your ignorance to try and get attention in front of me. It’s really low. As for that twenty-million-yuan check you used to try and get me to leave Gu Beixian, don’t do that again either. You look like a clown.”

Chu Suosuo’s face was nearly twisted with rage. She said sourly, “What are you so arrogant for? If my mother hadn’t forced me to go abroad three years ago, a substitute like you wouldn’t even exist in his life!”

“A substitute… ha, a substitute.” Su Hua’s face paled, her fingers digging into her palms.

This was the thorn embedded in her heart; one poke and the pain was agonizing.

Suddenly, a cold voice rang out from behind them. “Miss Chu might not be aware, but you are actually the substitute.”