1
The sound of the door unlocking came from downstairs. I quickly shoved the divorce papers in my hand into a drawer, then went downstairs as if nothing had happened.
“There’s food in the kitchen. Should I heat some up for you?”
Đoàn Châu took off his coat and looked up. “No need.”
Three words, simple and cold.
In the end, he added, “Thank you.”
What was he thanking me for?
For waiting for him to come home every single day throughout our ten months of marriage?
But I was his wife, not some business partner. Did he really have to thank me so politely and distantly for this…?
We’d been married for almost a year, but I’d never once felt that I’d truly made it into Đoàn Châu’s heart.
“Bội Bội, I have to get up early tomorrow to catch a flight.”
I stood timidly in the corner of the bedroom, watching Đoàn Châu carry his pillow and blanket into the living room.
It was his habit.
Every time he was about to leave on a business trip, he slept in the living room.
He said he did it so he wouldn’t disturb my sleep. But the truth was, Đoàn Châu was away from home so often for work that we rarely had the chance to sleep in the same bed.
I opened my mouth, wanting to tell him that he wouldn’t be disturbing me.
But in the end, I couldn’t bring myself to say it.
Forget it. I’d be asking for a divorce myself before long anyway.
2
Đoàn Châu and I met on a blind date. Our marriage could be considered a good match in terms of family background.
After all, we were from the same social circle.
I’d heard about Đoàn Châu even before our blind date.
They said he’d taken his family business from the brink of bankruptcy to a top-three position in just three years. He was known as a workaholic, obsessed with efficiency.
On top of that, he was rich and handsome.
Everyone in our circle wanted to marry him, men and women alike.
But sorry, I was the one who got this great deal.
Everyone said I was lucky, but only I knew how many wounds lay beneath this marriage.
Đoàn Châu valued efficiency in everything he did. Even our blind date took only half an hour.
The very next day, I met his parents. On the third day, we registered our marriage…
I think I agreed to marry him so quickly at first because I was captivated by his looks.
But it didn’t take long after we married for me to experience the pain of this whirlwind marriage.
Đoàn Châu and I spent more time apart than together. He was away on business most of the time, while I stayed home as a full-time housewife.
Calling it full-time was a stretch, though. I didn’t actually have to do anything; money simply appeared in my bank account every month.
It was the living expenses Đoàn Châu sent me.
Sounds nice, right?
I had money, looks, and plenty of free time.
But I didn’t need that allowance at all. What I lacked was love.
My family wasn’t as wealthy as Đoàn Châu’s, but they’d been able to give their daughter a comfortable life since childhood.
They were just very busy.
In my memories, my entire childhood could be summed up by a four-foot-tall teddy bear.
The first time I saw Đoàn Châu, I could feel my heart, frozen for more than twenty years, suddenly beating hard.
I thought I’d thrown myself into what I believed was a romantic love.
But I never expected that I was just a wife Đoàn Châu had casually chosen to satisfy his mother’s demands.
In these brief ten months of marriage, the only love I seemed to feel was the love my mother-in-law showed her daughter-in-law.
After all, Đoàn Châu treated me like a business partner…
2
Early the next morning, I opened my bedroom door and was surprised to find Đoàn Châu still home. Breakfast he’d made was even laid out on the table.
What was going on? Wasn’t he supposed to get up at six and head to the airport for his business trip?
Đoàn Châu knew I was awake and said softly, “The flight was canceled because of the weather. And Đào Nhiên just came back to the country, so Mom insisted I go pick her up.”
After a pause, he added:
“Mom also said to let her stay at our house for a while.”
I stood on the second floor, meeting Đoàn Châu’s gaze, and suddenly felt uneasy.
Đào Nhiên was only Đoàn Châu’s adopted younger sister; they had no blood relation at all.
What’s more, she seemed to have feelings for Đoàn Châu.
Before he went on a blind date with me, Đoàn Châu had gone on a few others. They were all with wealthy, beautiful women from prominent families.
But Đào Nhiên interfered every time, showing her scheming, fake-sweet side. And since Đoàn Châu wasn’t very good at recognizing that sort of behavior, none of the dates worked out.
Stories about Đào Nhiên’s manipulative tactics were well known in our circle. Everyone who’d encountered them was thoroughly impressed.
I suppose I was fairly lucky.
For some reason, Đào Nhiên hadn’t meddled in my blind date with Đoàn Châu. In fact, the night before we registered our marriage, my mother-in-law, worried Đào Nhiên might pull something, sent her abroad to study that very night.
But today, my mother-in-law not only didn’t mind Đào Nhiên coming back, she even asked her to stay at our house.
Didn’t that mean… my mother-in-law was letting Đào Nhiên steal Đoàn Châu away?
Or, put another way, she couldn’t stand our dysfunctional marriage anymore and wanted to use Đào Nhiên to drive us to divorce.
“If you don’t like it, I’ll tell Mom she can’t stay with us,” Đoàn Châu said, trying to comfort me when he saw me frown.
I shook my head and forced a smile. “No, it’s fine. I’d actually like to see her.”
I’d already prepared the divorce papers anyway. I might as well use Đào Nhiên’s presence to let things take their course and leave.
It seemed no one wanted this marriage to last.
3
To give Đoàn Châu and Đào Nhiên plenty of space to catch up, I went to the mall after breakfast.
Thinking that, as her sister-in-law, I should probably prepare a little welcome gift for Đào Nhiên,
I figured it was the least courtesy required.
As soon as I got home, a dark figure rushed toward me, accompanied by the distinctive sweet scent of a young woman.
“So this is my sister-in-law.” Before I could say anything, she continued, “Hello, sister-in-law. I’m Đào Nhiên.”
My right hand suddenly felt lighter. Only then did I realize Đoàn Châu had somehow taken all the bags from me without my noticing.
I nodded and reached out to shake Đào Nhiên’s hand.
But she was so effusive that she cupped my face and kissed me.
I understood. This was the green tea girl’s first move: pretending to be close.
Still, my face grew a little hot.
I’d been shy since I was a child, and I’d never been in love.
Even before getting physically close to Đoàn Châu, I had to work up to it.
What Đào Nhiên had done was more than I could handle.
Đoàn Châu looked displeased and said in a low voice, “Behave yourself. Don’t scare your sister-in-law.”
Đào Nhiên stuck out her tongue, her waist-length hair swaying as she put on a coquettish expression.
She wasn’t quite what I’d imagined.
I’d pictured Đào Nhiên as a frail white lotus, but I hadn’t expected her to be a five-foot-seven young woman.
Acting coy didn’t really suit her.
I handed Đào Nhiên the gift I’d picked out. She put it on and smiled. “Thank you, sister-in-law. I love it.”
I understood all the polite words on the surface.
Honestly, I was looking forward to seeing what tricks Đào Nhiên had up her sleeve. After all, my life had always gone smoothly, and my family had protected me well.
Everything I’d heard about Đào Nhiên was secondhand. If she could show me what the green tea girls in novels were really like, I’d be happy to see it.
4
Đoàn Châu had to take care of something at the company, so he left first.
That left just Đào Nhiên and me in the spacious villa.
I waited for her to show her true colors, but Đào Nhiên kept up her casual, familiar act and begged me, her sister-in-law, to take her out.
I agreed, still waiting for Đào Nhiên to make her move as we went.
But from morning until well after dark, nothing I’d been expecting happened.
I had to admit I was a little disappointed.
That evening, Đoàn Châu opened the door and came home.
I’d just finished showering and stepped out of the bathroom when Đào Nhiên came over.
I glanced at the second-floor staircase, then at Đào Nhiên.
I thought, If Đào Nhiên grabbed my hand now and threw herself down the stairs, then accused me of pushing her, Đoàn Châu would surely berate his distant wife.
I was already braced for that scene to play out.
But to my surprise, Đào Nhiên picked up a towel and gently dried my hair. “Sister-in-law, why didn’t you dry your hair after your shower? You’ll catch a cold.”
As soon as she finished, she raised her voice. “My brother only knows how to go out and work. Unlike his little sister, who only knows how to care about her sister-in-law.”
Those words… Why did they sound so much like something a green tea girl would say?
Đoàn Châu paused while taking off his jacket, then strode up to the second floor.
“Let me do it.”
Đào Nhiên handed Đoàn Châu a hair dryer she’d somehow gotten hold of.
But Đoàn Châu was a rich young master, and it was obvious he’d never dried anyone else’s hair before.
“Ow!”
Đoàn Châu’s rough movements hurt enough to bring tears to my eyes. I couldn’t help turning to look at him.
Đào Nhiên stood beside us with her arms crossed and clicked her tongue. “My brother really doesn’t know how to treat a lady like his little sister does. He’s pulled out several strands of my sister-in-law’s beautiful hair.”
Đoàn Châu frowned. “I’m sorry.”
His hand grew a little gentler.
In the mirror, the man in the suit looked focused, a cool air emanating from him.
It made sense. He’d just come home after a busy day, hadn’t even changed clothes yet, and was already here drying my hair.
The more I thought about it, the more guilty I felt.
Suddenly, my resolve to divorce him wasn’t as strong as before.