Chapter 1: Divorce

“Ma’am, here’s the divorce agreement. Please review it—just sign if everything looks good.”

Nan Xiao stared at the document thrust right under her nose, and suddenly her head buzzed like a struck bell. The world went silent.

"...Ma’am?"

When she didn’t respond after several long seconds, Zhou Wen waved his hand in front of her face.

Nan Xiao blinked back into focus, dazed. “Shie Chengyu wants to divorce me?”

She wore a mask, only her wide, luminous eyes visible—filled with confusion and sorrow. Zhou Wen looked away, guilt flickering across his face.

“Yes. Mr. Xie said that since the old lady passed, there’s no reason to keep this marriage going. So he wants to… divorce you.”

Her heart clenched—but beneath the pain came something else: the strange relief of a blade finally falling from above, after hanging over her head for years.

Three years ago, she’d married into the Xie family as a bride for luck—her face ruined, the second daughter of the Nan clan, forced into a marriage meant to appease the dying matriarch. She became Shie Chengyu’s wife.

But in those three years, they’d met only twice: once on their wedding day, and again just a month ago, when the old lady died. He hadn’t come home once. Clearly, he’d never considered her anything more than a formality. She’d known all along that once the old lady was gone, the marriage would end.

"Ma’am—"

After a few minutes of silence, Nan Xiao suddenly picked up the pen and signed with sharp, decisive strokes. Zhou Wen reached out quickly. "You haven’t even checked the terms—"

"No need."

She snapped the pen shut and slid the document back toward him.

She didn’t care how much money Shie Chengyu would give her. When the Xie family had approached her for the “luck marriage,” they’d handed over a massive compensation package—more than enough to live comfortably for life.

And besides, she’d never married Shie Chengyu for money.

She’d loved him since high school—eight long years of quiet devotion. Three years ago, agreeing to marry him had been about one thing: fulfilling a dream.

"Please tell him I’ll be moving out in the next couple of days. He can go back home now."

It must’ve been tough, having an unwanted wife living under the same roof while he’d been hiding outside for three years.

A bitter smile tugged at Nan Xiao’s lips. She swallowed hard, fighting back tears, then turned and walked upstairs.

"Yanyan," she whispered into the phone as she reached the window. "I’m divorced."

The voice on the other end froze. "What? Divorced? Did Shie Chengyu file?"

"Yes."

"How could he be so cruel! Not coming home for three years is bad enough—but now he actually wants to *end* it?"

Hearing her best friend’s outrage, Nan Xiao pressed her lips together. "It’s okay. I knew from the beginning—he told me himself. He married me only to fulfill the old lady’s wish. He never loved me."

Her fingers gripped the windowsill.

She kept telling herself to let go. But every time she thought about it, the ache returned.

"Ugh, you’re such a fool," Lin Yan sighed.

As Nan Xiao’s closest friend, Lin Yan knew better than anyone how deeply she’d loved Shie Chengyu.

Thinking back on all the sacrifices Nan Xiao had made—years of painful treatments, enduring isolation, rebuilding her face just so he might glance at her—she felt furious on her friend’s behalf.

"For three years, you suffered through hell just to get your face back. You did it all hoping he’d finally look at you. And now, after everything—you’re left with nothing but this?"

"It’s fine," Nan Xiao said softly. "At least my face is mine again. And if I’m whole, that’s good enough for me."

"You’re right. Think that way! Now that it’s over, just live for yourself. Let that bastard rot wherever he’s comfortable."

Lin Yan’s words cracked Nan Xiao’s composure. A small laugh escaped her—brief, but real.

But then she looked up—and saw the wedding photo on the wall. Just her. Alone.

Her chest tightened.

She pulled off her mask and stared into the mirror. The face staring back was flawless—beautiful, radiant. But her eyes held a quiet sadness.

They’d been married for years. Yet he’d never seen her true face.

For three years, she’d been a name without a presence, a ghost in the social circle—laughed at behind closed doors. Now it was over. Maybe… maybe this was a kind of beginning.