Di- divorce?
Gu Minghe thought he had misheard. He quietly looked at Pei Huaishe, his expression calm and steady; however, the hand locked around Pei Huaishe’s slender waist suddenly tightened, firmly imprisoning the person in his arms within the hard cage he had woven.
“Are you angry?”
Pei Huaishe did not answer him; he just kept on crying.
Hot teardrops fell onto Gu Minghe’s chest, soaking through the thin fabric and sinking into his skin, as if branding Pei Huaishe’s tears directly onto his heart.
“I was wrong. I apologize to you. I shouldn’t have joked around with you,” Gu Minghe coaxed him softly. “Or did the car accident scare you? I promise there won’t be a next time.”
The words “car accident” fell into Pei Huaishe’s ears like a curse, causing his expression to change instantly.
No longer hesitating, he looked Gu Minghe in the eye once more and said word for word, “I want a divorce.”
His gaze was serious, devoid of any joking intent.
The tight string in Gu Minghe’s mind snapped in an instant.
His pitch-black eyes turned unfathomable. He stared unblinkingly at Pei Huaishe, as if trying to confirm this wasn’t a joke. “Why would you want a divorce out of nowhere?”
“No particular reason. I just want a divorce.”
Pei Huaishe didn’t want to use excuses like “I don’t love you anymore” to deceive someone; he couldn’t bring himself to say it. Therefore, like a willful, crying child who wouldn’t explain why he was crying or making a fuss, he simply demanded the outcome he wanted.
Yet, Gu Minghe inferred a completely different meaning from his words.
“Is it because of Gu Yanchen? You still can’t forget him after all.” His tone was calm, as if he had anticipated this day would come sooner or later.
“It’s not because of Big Brother…” Pei Huaishe defended himself, but his pale complexion made his defense look feeble.
A hint of a smile curved the corners of Gu Minghe’s lips. His large palm slowly traced upward along Pei Huaishe’s spine. His voice lacked fluctuations, yet listening to it made one’s heart pound with dread.
“Divorce? Not in this lifetime.”
He could never let go of Pei Huaishe, nor could he bear to watch the person he loved end up with someone else.
He remembered many years ago when Pei Huaishe’s face had flushed red as he told him that he had fallen in love with Gu Yanchen.
That day was the first time Gu Minghe ever learned what it felt like to be abandoned.
He had always been a favored child of heaven, easily obtaining whatever he desired, his life sailing smoothly all the way until he took a massive stumble over Pei Huaishe.
He had long since become Pei Huaishe’s loyal dog, so why was his master suddenly discarding him?
Tonight, as Pei Huaishe attempted to cast him off once more, Gu Minghe’s eyes displayed undisguised heartbreak.
Pulling Pei Huaishe tightly into his arms, he rested his head against the other’s shoulder and nuzzled him. He lowered his pride and begged him, “Wife, please don’t abandon me.”
Instead of calming down, Pei Huaishe cried even harder. He buried his face against Gu Minghe’s chest, his entire body flushed with an alluring pink from weeping, shaking uncontrollably. Exhausted from crying, he eventually fell asleep right there against Gu Minghe.
Gu Minghe stroked his back gently, over and over again, feeling a bitter ache deep within his heart.
Just because he refused to consent to a divorce, he cried himself into such a state.
Did he really love Gu Yanchen that much?
The next day, when Pei Huaishe woke up, he still insisted on getting a divorce.
Regardless of whether Gu Minghe agreed or not, his mind was made up.
However, no matter what Pei Huaishe said, Gu Minghe either changed the subject or pretended not to hear, stubbornly refusing to relent.
Calming down a bit, Pei Huaishe mechanically repeated his demand for a divorce while feeding Gu Minghe his meal.
Gu Minghe interrupted him: “Baby, you haven’t had lunch yet, and you didn’t eat breakfast either. Aren’t you hungry? Let me feed you instead.”
Compared to being looked after by Pei Huaishe, he was far more accustomed to taking care of Pei Huaishe himself.
If not for his injured legs, he would have pinned the person down on the bed long ago and kissed him fiercely until he could no longer utter the word “divorce.”
“I’m not hungry,” Pei Huaishe said coldly. “If you don’t agree to the divorce, I won’t eat.”
With those words, the hospital room fell silent for a full second.
“Then I won’t eat either.” Gu Minghe stopped eating altogether.
Pei Huaishe looked at him, his hand gripping the spoon trembling slightly.
“Fine.”
Without arguing further, he simply packed away the bowls and chopsticks.
The two of them locked horns just like they used to when they were children, neither willing to lower their head first.
Although Gu Minghe was injured, his physical stamina vastly surpassed Pei Huaishe’s. Missing a single meal wouldn’t harm him much, but Pei Huaishe couldn’t endure it.
Having skipped breakfast and now skipping lunch as well, his stomach was already completely empty, leaving him with an uncomfortable, gnawing hunger.
He sat by the edge of the hospital bed. Initially sitting up straight, he gradually wrapped his arms around his stomach, his back arching as fine beads of sweat formed on his forehead and his lips turned pale.
In a split second, a large hand pulled him directly into a warm embrace. Gu Minghe hurried to hug his trembling body, sliding a scorching palm underneath the hem of his shirt to massage his thin waist in small circles.
“Is your stomach hurting? Let me rub it for you.”
Before long, his snow-white abdomen was tinted with a faint pink. Resting his cheek against Gu Minghe’s shoulder, Pei Huaishe bit his lip hard, fighting to keep himself from making any strange sounds.
“I told you to eat, yet you insist on picking a fight with me. The only one suffering is your own body.” Gu Minghe sighed, torn between heartbreak and helplessness.
He continued to try and persuade Pei Huaishe to eat, but once Pei Huaishe grew stubborn, absolutely no one could sway him.
He would rather starve himself; as long as Gu Minghe refused to relent, he wouldn’t touch a bite.
Seeing that Pei Huaishe was willing to threaten his own health just to force a divorce, Gu Minghe felt a chilling emptiness wash over his heart.
“Pei Huaishe, do you really have to treat me this way?”
“Just because you know I love you, you trample on yourself like this?”
“You clearly know I could never bear to watch you hurt yourself.”
“Pei Huaishe, you win.”
Gu Minghe loosened his embrace. He silently gazed at the person he loved, his deep eyes overflowing with immensely complicated emotions. He felt he ought to feel hatred, yet whenever he faced Pei Huaishe, try as he might, he couldn’t summon any hatred at all.
Pei Huaishe, however, did not dare meet his eyes.
Dodge his gaze, he lowered his head to stare at the floor like a pearl hiding inside a clam shell, unable to face the sadness and disappointment in Gu Minghe’s eyes.
I’m sorry. Once all of this is over, I will give you a proper explanation.
Pei Huaishe thought to himself with a heavy heart.
The consensus to divorce was reached just like that. The very next day, Pei Huaishe called in a lawyer to draft the divorce agreement.
“In such a rush to get a divorce?”
Gu Minghe’s face turned ashen, his heart aching with a sour, burning tightness.
Pei Huaishe swayed unsteadily under his interrogation. Seeing that he looked on the verge of fainting, Gu Minghe finally showed mercy and let up.
He had no desire to see Pei Huaishe hurt himself over a divorce any longer. Composing himself, Gu Minghe took the agreement and read through it carefully before speaking: “I’ll take a clean break with zero assets.”
He requested that all real estate, funds, and companies under his name, including Xingyue—be handed over entirely to Pei Huaishe.
Pei Huaishe’s eyes widened in shock. He clenched his fists tightly and refused vehemently, “I don’t want it!”
He was the one insisting on the divorce, and Gu Minghe hadn’t done anything wrong—why on earth should Gu Minghe walk away with nothing?!
“Pei Huaishe, this is my condition for agreeing to the divorce. If you don’t agree, we don’t even need to discuss the divorce.”
This was the maximum concession Gu Minghe could make.
If money was gone, he could always earn it back.
Not to mention he had the immense backing of the Gu family; the dividends he received from the Gu Group every year alone were more than enough for him to squander.
Pei Huaishe, however, was different.
Pei Huaishe had been raised by him to be delicate and pampered, accustomed to the very best food, clothing, and lifestyle. If he left him, would Pei Huaishe go hungry? Would he be bullied by others? Would he even be unable to afford a favorite handbag? Just the thought of it made Gu Minghe’s heart ache unbearably.
Pei Huaishe bit his lip, well aware of Gu Minghe’s kind intentions.
Everything he currently possessed had been given to him by Gu Minghe, including the daily life he shared on his influencer social media accounts, which was entirely supported by Gu Minghe’s financial backing.
Without Gu Minghe, he was merely the son of a domestic worker; he would be beaten right back down to his original station.
Perhaps that was why the original novel portrayed him as a vicious cannon fodder character.
In the original book, he was vain and jealous. Because of his humble background, he envied Su Jin, who had grown up bathed in the spotlight.
Viciously, he desired to contend for everything connected to Su Jin.
That was why he fell in love with Gu Yanchen, treating Gu Yanchen as his ultimate trophy, believing that winning Gu Yanchen meant winning the entire world.
Yet in reality, he had not grown up according to the trajectory of the original book.
He had Gu Minghe by his side. Gu Minghe loved him dearly, holding him in the palm of his hand, doting on him from childhood to adulthood, and raising him amidst boundless affection. Because of that, he wasn’t vain, nor was he jealous; he possessed the best Gu Minghe in the entire world, how could he possibly envy anyone else or want to snatch away someone else’s love?
Pei Huaishe couldn’t connect that fractured person from the book with himself.
Yet reality was forcing him to become that exact kind of Pei Huaishe.
Thinking of this, he felt a wave of grievances so intense it made him want to cry.
“I don’t want your money! Gu Minghe, you’re always like this—making decisions and arranging everything for me under the banner of ‘what’s best for you,’ but have you ever considered whether I actually need it, or what I truly want? Can you stop being so overbearing for once?!” Pei Huaishe shouted out recklessly.
He vented the grievances, anger, terror, and anxiety swirling in his heart. He knew he shouldn’t act this way, but apart from losing his temper at Gu Minghe, he had no idea who else he could vent to.
Only Gu Minghe would tolerate him without any bottom line, which was precisely why he dared to behave so unscrupulously.
Gu Minghe was stunned by his outburst.
Pei Huaishe rarely threw such a breakdown of a temper. His little cat was usually gentle, well-behaved, spoiled, and cute; yet even when Pei Huaishe was throwing a tantrum, he loved him all the same.
And his heart ached for him just as much.
Seeing them argue, the lawyer awkwardly interjected, “Should the two of you discuss this a bit more?”
“No need,” Pei Huaishe wiped away his tears. “I don’t agree to Gu Minghe walking away with nothing, but I am still going through with this divorce. Gu Minghe, this is a notice, not a negotiation. Sign the papers already.”
Gu Minghe gripped his pen tightly.
After a long silence, he finally spoke: “Alright.”
If this is what you want, I’ll give it to you.
“Xiaoxue, is this truly what you want?”
He signed his name on the paper. “You said I don’t understand what you truly want, but I’ll change. Please don’t hate me.”
With reddened eyes, Pei Huaishe followed suit, stroke by stroke writing down his name.
His tears fell onto the paper, blurring his vision. Tears welled up in his eyes, brimming until they could hold no more, when a gentle hand tenderly reached out to wipe them away.
“Stop crying. I’ve already agreed to the divorce, so why are you still crying?”