Chapter 37

Chapter 37

“Suosuo!” Chu Yanru shouted. He cast a cold, sidelong glance at Su Hua before turning to chase after his daughter.

Silence returned to the small garden.

Su Hua reached out and silently embraced Gu Beixian. Her heart was a storm of emotions, and something damp and heavy seemed to be clogging her throat.

She buried her face against his chest, her tears finally flowing uncontrollably.

At this moment, her heart was filled with reluctance-reluctance to leave him, reluctance to divorce him.

She hugged his waist with all her might, holding him as tightly as she could, yet she felt utterly powerless.

Feeling the dampness on his shirt, Gu Beixian tilted her small chin up. “Are you crying?”

Su Hua didn’t say a word. With reddened eyes, she pressed her face back against his shirt.

“Don’t cry anymore. Your eyes will get swollen if you keep this up,” he said, his voice softening as he patiently tried to soothe her.

Su Hua’s throat felt tight. “Why are you so good to me?”

Gu Beixian raised an eyebrow slightly, a teasing smile playing on his lips. “A single sentence counts as being good to you? My Huahua is far too easy to please.”

“Why are you so good to me?” Su Hua ignored his teasing and stubbornly asked again.

Gu Beixian’s gaze softened as he stroked her hair. “The world is a treacherous place, and you don’t have a powerful father to protect you. You only have a mother who’s a paper tiger and a sickly grandmother. You’re all alone; if I don’t protect you, who will?”

Su Hua’s heart throbbed with a sudden, sharp pain.

The better he treated her, the more her heart ached.

She asked softly, “Is it worth it?”

What she really wanted to ask was: Is it worth offending the Gu Group’s business partners, offending your future father-in-law, and offending your childhood sweetheart and fiancé-to-be, all for me?

Gu Beixian understood what she meant. He pulled her closer into his embrace. “From a business perspective, it’s certainly not worth it. But if I didn’t do it, my conscience would ache.”

Su Hua said nothing. She simply hugged him even tighter, wishing she could merge into him.

That heavy sense of powerlessness welled up from deep within her once more, trapping her. Chu Suosuo was right about one thing: she had been born into the right family. She had won from the moment she was born.

Back at the museum.

As soon as Shen Yuan saw Su Hua, she started pestering her with questions. “I heard from my brother that the handsome guy is named Gu Beixian. He’s the second son of the Gu Group. Is he a distant relative of yours?”

For a fleeting moment, Su Hua wanted to tell her that the man was the husband she was about to divorce.

But she wasn’t the type to spill her life story to anyone who asked. Besides, knowing Shen Yuan’s personality, she would surely keep digging until she got every detail. It wasn’t exactly a glorious situation, and Su Hua didn’t want to cause a stir.

After a brief silence, Su Hua gave a faint hum of affirmation and walked into the restoration room with little enthusiasm.

She sat quietly in a corner, watching a group of experts from all over the country argue back and forth. They were debating whether to use the Southern restoration method or the Northern restoration method to repair the holes in a painting.

Su Hua’s head throbbed from the noise. She felt like stepping in herself just to finish the job and leave. In the time they spent arguing, she could have already patched the holes.

When the meeting finally adjourned in the afternoon, the experts headed to a hotel for dinner and drinks.

Su Hua left the building.

Just as she stepped out, she received a call from Gu Beixian. “My mother wants to see us. My car is parked at the museum entrance. Come over.”

After getting into the car, Su Hua asked, “Have you been at the museum all day?”

Gu Beixian started the engine. “No, I arrived an hour ago. The curator held a donation ceremony that just finished.”

The two of them drove to Qin Shu’s bridal boutique.

Located in the heart of the city’s commercial district, the shop occupied an entire ten-story building. It was exquisitely decorated and very grand. Qin Shu was a quintessential career woman.

Su Hua followed Gu Beixian into the elevator and up to his mother’s office.

As soon as they entered, Qin Shu greeted them warmly. She took Su Hua’s hand and led her to the computer, pointing at the design sketches on the screen. “Mom designed three wedding dresses for you. Take a look-which one do you like best?”

Su Hua froze. A needle-like pain pricked her heart. She stole a glance at Gu Beixian before smiling at Qin Shu. “Mom-no, Auntie, I won’t be needing these anymore. Beixian and I are getting divorced soon.”

Qin Shu paused, a hint of sadness in her eyes. “Mom knows. I just want to give you a wedding dress. Regardless of who you marry in the future, I want you to have one from me.”

Su Hua was both moved and pained. Her heart felt as if it were being clawed at. She forced a strained smile. “Thank you, Auntie, but it’s really not necessary.”

She was the type who took a long time to warm up to people; it was hard for her to fall in love, and once she did, it was even harder to move on. As for remarriage, that felt like something in the very distant future.

Qin Shu looked a bit displeased. “Don’t call me Auntie. Even if you and Beixian divorce, I’m still your mother. If you can’t be my daughter-in-law, then be my daughter. I’ve already finished the designs-I stayed up for several nights to draw them. If you don’t take one, it means you’re looking down on me.”
Su Hua’s eyes welled with tears, so moved she was on the verge of crying. Unable to refuse Qin Shu’s kindness, she sat down beside her and began to look through the designs seriously.

She preferred simple, elegant styles, so she chose a white, slim-fit gown with a long train. The fabric was as light and pure as a white cloud.

Qin Shu gripped the mouse and asked, “Are you sure you want this one?”

“I’m sure. Thank you, Mom.”

“Then wait a moment. I’ll have someone come in to take your measurements. Once that’s done, I’ll arrange for the pattern-making tomorrow. Wedding dresses are very time-consuming to make.”

“Okay.”

Qin Shu dialed the intercom and called for her assistant.

Su Hua looked around the office. It doubled as Qin Shu’s design studio-spacious and bright, with many beautiful wedding dresses displayed on mannequins against the walls.

A woman’s love for wedding dresses is innate, and Su Hua couldn’t help but walk over to them.

The physical garments were far more striking than the design sketches. Su Hua found them all so beautiful that she couldn’t resist reaching out to touch them; the fabric felt silky to the touch.

She imagined herself wearing a wedding dress, and her lips curled into a smile, though a hint of sadness lingered in her heart.

When she married Gu Beixian three years ago, he couldn’t stand on his own legs. They hadn’t held a wedding ceremony, which remained a deep regret for her.

Qin Shu looked up and saw Su Hua staring blankly at the dresses. She smiled and said, “If you like them, try them on. Try as many as you want. Whichever one you like, Mom will give it to you.”

Su Hua’s gloomy mood instantly brightened, her large eyes sparkling. “Can I really?”

“Of course,” Qin Shu said with a gentle smile, her eyes full of the same doting affection and tolerance she would show her own daughter.

Just then, the assistant knocked and entered. She took a dress off a mannequin and accompanied Su Hua to the fitting room.

Putting on a wedding dress was a bit of a chore, so the assistant helped Su Hua into it.

Ten minutes later, Su Hua stepped out of the fitting room with a graceful, swaying gait.

The pure white, slim-fit gown accentuated her slender waist and elegant posture. Her small, oval face looked clean and delicate, complemented by watery eyes, cherry-red lips, and a refined nose.

The backless design perfectly revealed her beautiful back and shoulder blades.

Looking in the mirror, Su Hua thought she looked stunning.

Truly, a wedding dress was the most beautiful garment a woman could wear.

Gu Beixian sat on the sofa with his long legs crossed in a relaxed posture. Watching her from a distance, his expression remained calm, yet a flash of breathtaking wonder danced in his eyes.

Qin Shu walked over to help Su Hua adjust the hem, praising her, “My daughter-in-law has such a slim waist, long legs, a swan-like neck, and fair skin. With your temperament, you look more beautiful in this dress than a celebrity. Why don’t you just come work as a model for me?”

Gu Beixian curled his lips slightly. “Su Hua makes quite a bit of money restoring ancient paintings. How much would you even pay her to be a model? It would be a waste of her talent.”

Su Hua remembered how she had told him not long ago that she made good money from her restorations and had even claimed she would support him. Her ears instantly turned red at the memory.

Qin Shu gave Gu Beixian a disdainful look. “Exactly. My daughter-in-law is talented, beautiful, and kind-hearted. Someone just has poor eyesight and insists on a divorce.”

Su Hua said softly, “Don’t blame him.”

Qin Shu chided, “Don’t speak up for him. His father is partly to blame, but the greatest responsibility lies with him.”

Su Hua was deeply moved.

What kind of saintly mother-in-law was this? Most mothers-in-law sided with their sons, yet she sided with her daughter-in-law.

After the fitting, the assistant helped Su Hua hold the train as they went back into the fitting room to change.

Qin Shu poured a glass of water and walked over to Gu Beixian. Sitting down beside him, she watched him in silence for a moment before saying in a somewhat melancholy tone, “You clearly like her. Why aren’t you trying to find a way to make her stay?”

Gu Beixian’s mind drifted for a moment. He picked up his coffee, took a sip, and said absentmindedly, “My father doesn’t approve. Even if she stayed, she would only be mistreated.”

“Your father doesn’t approve, but with your abilities, you could live a very good life without depending on him. To live is to seek emotional connection; material things are only meant to serve our desires and feelings. When you reach my age, you’ll understand that money, power, fame, and profit are all secondary. Feelings are what matter most. Once you miss out on certain people, you’ll regret it for a lifetime.” Thinking of the past and an old friend, Qin Shu’s gaze grew distant as she sighed softly.

Gu Beixian’s eyes darkened. He looked up toward the fitting room and, after a long silence, finally spoke. “It was her decision. I respect her.”

Actually, he knew the real reason very well.

Su Hua had someone else in her heart.

She didn’t love him.

He didn’t want to trap her by his side, forcing her to suffer through nightmares every night, crying out for her Ay Yao in her sleep.

There is a kind of love called letting go.