I'm Done with the Elite Marriage - Chapter 7
The Fu Family’s ancestral home is located east of the city.
Years ago, the Fu Family made their fortune in real estate. Old Master Fu bought the land where the old house stood and transformed it into the courtyard villa that stands today. Inspired by Old Master Fu, a wave of enthusiasts for Chinese-style architecture soon followed suit, constructing similar villas in the east of the city. Nowadays, this area in Nanzhou City is unofficially recognized as the enclave of the invisibly wealthy.
The eastern part of the city is far from the downtown area. Driving from the city center to the ancestral home takes at least an hour.
In the backseat of the black Rolls Royce, Zhou Youling and Fu Xunzhou sat on opposite sides. Suddenly, Zhou Youling remembered the scene she had witnessed the day before: Xue Yining getting into Fu Xunzhou’s car, sitting precisely where she was now.
As they got into the car, Fu Xunzhou received a call from his mother asking where he was.
“I’m on the way,” Fu Xunzhou told her.
The car was well soundproofed, almost completely shutting out the noise of the bustling streets outside.
This allowed Zhou Youling to clearly hear her mother-in-law’s voice: “Doesn’t Youling love to cook for you? Why are you eating out today?”
Fu Xunzhou came up with a casual excuse: “Eating at home gets a bit monotonous after a while.”
“Alright, just get here safely,” his mother said.
Zhou Youling leaned against the car window, her lips curling into a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
So the meals she painstakingly prepared every day were just monotonous to him. How ironic. She had thought her attentiveness would make him feel at home, but it seemed she was just fooling herself.
After hanging up the phone, Fu Xunzhou turned to Zhou Youling and asked, “Are you okay? Your knee…”
Zhou Youling took a tissue and gently pressed it against her knee where she had scraped it.
The injury wasn’t severe, just a scrape, but a little blood seeped through.
Such minor injuries were deceivingly painful, much like their marriage which seemed unproblematic on the surface, yet was deeply agonizing.
Fu Xunzhou, not used to caring for others, just watched as Zhou Youling tended to her wound. He explained his earlier carelessness: “I didn’t mean to make you fall.”
As she tossed the blood-stained tissue into the car’s trash can and closed her eyes to avoid Fu Xunzhou’s gaze, he asked, “Is that it? Aren’t you worried about infection?”
“Mm,” she murmured. It’s not fatal.
By the time Zhou Youling felt a cool sensation on her leg, Fu Xunzhou had already leaned over to tend to her wound.
Although there were no disinfectants in the car, they weren’t short on purified water. Seeing some dirt on the scraped knee, Fu Xunzhou meticulously cleaned it with a damp tissue.
This was probably the first time in his life Fu Xunzhou had knelt to serve someone, and it was also a step down he offered to Zhou Youling.
Zhou Youling didn’t refuse or thank him, watching expressionlessly as Fu Xunzhou rolled up his sleeves and worked.
From childhood, it seemed the knees were always the most vulnerable. When she first learned to walk, it was her knees that bore the brunt of her falls. And as an adult, it seemed no different. People tend to repeat the same mistakes, forgetting the pain once the wounds heal and scar.
Hidden among the faint scars on Zhou Youling’s knees were burns. Over the years, various scar removal treatments had made them nearly invisible.
Ten years ago, a fire almost claimed her life. Trapped under burning timber, it was Fu Xunzhou who had lifted the debris off her knees and carried her out of the blaze.
In the haze of the fire, Zhou Youling could only make out the silhouette of her rescuer. It was later confirmed that the person who saved her from the fire was indeed Fu Xunzhou.
Her heart momentarily softened, and her eyes welled up. If he was willing to risk his life to save her, why did he seem so indifferent in everyday life?
During their three years of marriage, Zhou Youling couldn’t tell what role she was supposed to play. She had given up her social circle and hobbies to devote herself entirely to taking care of him. What had she gained in return?
Often feeling hopeless about their marriage, she reassured herself that he was only indifferent on the surface, that deep down he cared.
She believed he would provide a wonderful future for her, that he would be her support.
But she could no longer bear it.
“Does it hurt?” Fu Xunzhou noticed the moisture in Zhou Youling’s eyes.
She shook her head.
Fu Xunzhou offered no further words of comfort, as comforting was not his forte.
An hour passed quickly, and they soon arrived at the ancestral home.
As the driver opened the door for Zhou Youling, Fu Xunzhou exited the car on the other side. He didn’t wait for her; instead, he headed straight inside to meet the meddling elders.
As Zhou Youling was about to step out, her phone vibrated violently inside her bag. As she reached for it, it slipped into the crevice of the seat. Using the light to guide her, she retrieved the phone and also noticed a lipstick stuck in the gap.
A Christian Louboutin Queen’s Scepter lipstick in black casing.
Zhou Youling slowly pulled out the lipstick and handed it to the driver: “I’m not sure whose this is, but you might know.”
The driver instinctively started to explain.
Zhou Youling shook her head, smiling: “No need to explain.”
She knew whose lipstick it was, whether it was left there intentionally or not.
…
Fu Xunzhou had been abroad for a month and had also been absent from family gatherings during that time.
In the Fu Family, Fu Xunzhou was the third grandson. When Old Master Fu, Fu Deyao, decided to hand over the family affairs to Fu Xunzhou, there were murmurs of disapproval. Old Master Fu threw a teacup to the ground in anger, his face as stern as Fu Xunzhou’s.
Fu Deyao had declared that he had fought hard for his empire and would pass it on to whomever he wished, and no one dared to object openly, though there was some resentment behind his back, even though Fu Xunzhou had generated substantial profits for the family.
Entering the house through a long corridor built over a pond, it was the season when lotuses were in full bloom. Under the lights, the decorative fish in the water could be clearly seen swimming.
The sound of Fu Xunzhou’s leather shoes on the wooden floor was faint, his stride firm.
Soon, a nosy relative commented, “Third brother is here… but it seems his sister-in-law isn’t with him.”
Hearing this, Fu Zhiqing stood upright, turning her back to the door.
Yu Wanrong quickly looked outside, and soon saw Fu Xunzhou entering alone.
As he came in, Fu Xunzhou first greeted his grandfather, Fu Deyao.
Old Master Fu’s expression was neutral as he asked, “Where’s Youling?”
Before Fu Xunzhou could reply, someone sarcastically remarked, “Oh, what time do you call this? We’ve been waiting for you two for ages.”
Turning his head, Fu Xunzhou saw it was his Second Aunt. He glanced at her and said coolly, “I have been busy with official matters, perhaps not as leisurely as Second Aunt, please forgive me.”
His Second Aunt, at a loss for words, then asked, “Where’s Zhou Youling? Didn’t she come? What, is she too scared to show up?”
Just then, Zhou Youling appeared at the entrance of the hall.
“Second Aunt, I don’t know what there is for me to be afraid of,” Zhou Youling said with an innocent face, her words sharp yet undetectable in their defiance.
She ignored Second Aunt’s reaction and walked over to greet her grandfather, Fu Deyao.
“Grandfather, are you feeling tired?” Zhou Youling, gentle and soft like a fluffy rabbit, took Old Master Fu’s hand.
His face softened significantly at her words. Surrounded by a group seeking attention late at night, no one had noticed his fatigue until she walked in and immediately showed concern, quickly earning his favor.
“I am a bit tired,” Fu Deyao admitted.
“Father!” Fu Zhiqing couldn’t hold back any longer, “Are you going to be biased towards others today when we just want justice?”
“Others? Who are these others?” Fu Deyao’s gaze hardened as he looked at his daughter Fu Zhiqing, “Since Youling has married into the Fu Family, she is one of us!”
Fu Zhiqing, with her neatly cut short hair, usually portrayed an image of a competent woman, but her words betrayed a pettiness. She hmphed, saying, “Fine, today your daughter is cursed to death, and you don’t care at all, instead you side with this younger generation?”
Tears filled Fu Zhiqing’s eyes as she spoke, her face full of grievance.
Zhou Youling watched calmly, finding the situation somewhat amusing. Since entering, it seemed the entire family harbored hostility towards her, with Fu Zhiqing showing the most. On ordinary days, if Fu Xunzhou was by her side, Fu Zhiqing would be all smiles and kindness. But if he wasn’t, she would put on an elder’s airs, as if fearing others wouldn’t know she was already a woman past her prime.
Fu Zhiqing stood up, still aggressive: “I don’t know what you see in this girl, why do you have to favor her so much? After all, Jiang Sha is also your niece. Today your precious grandson’s wife can bully your daughter, tomorrow she might as well trample over you. Are you really planning to let this go unchecked?”
Fu Deyao remained silent, clearly tired of further argument with his daughter.
Having dealt with her father, Fu Zhiqing turned her attention directly to Zhou Youling: “All the elders are here today, you, a junior, don’t think about flaunting your authority. Kneel down and apologize to me in front of everyone, and I’ll let this go.”
Zhou Youling had been silent from the start, knowing it wasn’t worth arguing with such a person. She looked around and realized that not a single person in the family was speaking up for her. And her husband, Fu Xunzhou, was being held back by his dignified and virtuous mother, Yu Wanrong.
The silent hall echoed as Yu Wanrong spoke, “Youling, apologize to your aunt.”
“Kneel down and apologize to me,” Fu Zhiqing pressed, with Jiang Sha smirking triumphantly beside her.
Yu Wanrong pinched her son Fu Xunzhou, forcing him to remain seated as he attempted to stand.
Feeling utterly abandoned, Zhou Youling looked distantly at Fu Xunzhou, her heart filled with desolation.
