With a cold sneer, Mu Xiaocao returned to her room, soaked her feet, and then made herself a bowl of egg noodles.
Since she had returned to this time, she hadn’t had a single bite of hot food yet.
Now that she was full, she would go get a divorce tomorrow.
When she went to sleep that night, Mu Xiaocao locked the inner door and even braced it with a heavy doorstop.
It wasn’t until the early morning that Liu Guoqiang returned home, draped in the morning mist.
Entering the house, he saw Mu Xiaocao sitting in the living room eating a bowl of porridge and a steamed bun.
Inside the bun, there was a golden fried egg and two slices of cured meat.
Liu Guoqiang’s anger dissipated significantly at the sight of this breakfast.
With a dark face, he sat down at the table.
Mu Xiaocao ignored him, eating her porridge and bun with great relish.
Liu Guoqiang furrowed his brows in discomfort.
So, she was throwing a tantrum now? How dare she act out her temper with him!
Shouldn’t she be diligently serving him as usual, helping him wash up and preparing his meal?
But after waiting for a long time, Mu Xiaocao remained indifferent, not even casting a single glance his way.
He had really spoiled her.
He stood up and went to the kitchen.
But once inside, he was stunned.
The kitchen was cleaned spotless; even the pots were turned upside down on the stove to drain.
“Mu Xiaocao, where is my breakfast?”
Mu Xiaocao stuffed the last bite of the bun into her mouth and took a sip of porridge before saying, “Doesn’t your unit’s canteen provide meals?”
Liu Guoqiang was choked for words.
There was breakfast there, yes, but he had taken it to Hu Lili. He hadn’t eaten yet.
But what right did Mu Xiaocao have to not leave any food for him?
“Why did you only make enough for one person?”
“Is there a problem?”
“Go out into the compound and ask around—which family’s wife doesn’t cook for her husband?”
Mu Xiaocao put down her bowl, her sallow, dark face filled with irony.
“Then go ask around—which family’s man only cares for others and ignores his own wife?”
Liu Guoqiang was taken aback.
He scrutinized Mu Xiaocao carefully for a few moments.
This woman—how had she become so different? She had become sharp-tongued and coarse in her manners, even daring to talk back to him.
His deep pupils were filled with scrutiny as he stared at Mu Xiaocao.
This woman came from the countryside and didn’t have much worldly experience.
Whether before or after their marriage, no matter what he said or did, she had always been like a submissive quail, centering her entire life around him and listening to everything he said.
But today, this woman was acting very strangely.
Heh, was she playing hard to get?
He never fell for that.
“Forget it if you didn’t make breakfast. I’m going to work now. At noon, cook some lean meat porridge; Lili wants to eat some.”
As Mu Xiaocao drank her porridge, a wave of desolation washed over her heart.
In her previous life, she had kept the house organized and spotless, cooking delicious meals that were perfect in color, aroma, and taste.
All of it was just to wait for this man to return and give her a complete home.
But loving a heartless man was destined to be her tragedy, and her stupidity.
She didn’t blame her child for choosing someone else to be their mother.
Compared to Hu Lili, who was the same age, her own face was aged, her clothes were rustic, and she spent her days toiling in the soil. In every aspect, she couldn’t compare to the well-maintained and employed Hu Lili.
But what about Liu Guoqiang?
Why couldn’t he just let her go? Why did he have to let her waste her entire life only to end up in such a miserable state?
After she died, he married Hu Lili, and the family lived happily ever after.
Had he ever considered how stifled and difficult her life as a “virtuous wife and mother” had been?
No, Liu Guoqiang knew.
It was just that she was like a weed in the wild; in his world, she couldn’t stir up even the slightest ripple.
Since she couldn’t stir anything up, she would stop trying.
Seeing that she was ignoring him, Liu Guoqiang said irritably, “Mu Xiaocao, did you hear what I said!”
His tone was extremely heavy.
Mu Xiaocao finished the last sip of porridge, looked up to meet Liu Guoqiang’s indignant eyes, and said coldly, “You want me to serve a mistress? Where do you get the gall?”
“What mistress? What nonsense are you talking about? I’ve already explained—Lili is the widow of my comrade-in-arms. Her health is poor. What’s wrong with me taking extra care of her?”
Mu Xiaocao bit back with sarcasm.
“Is it because you think she’s pitiful, or because you’ve never been able to forget her?”
Meeting Mu Xiaocao’s dark eyes, Liu Guoqiang felt his breath hitch.
He didn’t like this version of Mu Xiaocao who talked back to him about everything.
He still preferred the timid, weak Mu Xiaocao whose eyes lit up whenever she saw him, who was full of flattery and admiration for him.
He liked the Mu Xiaocao who treated his every word like an imperial decree, no matter what he said.
He liked the Mu Xiaocao who revolved around him entirely without a single word of complaint.
Watching Mu Xiaocao take her bowl into the kitchen, he followed her.
The unit had a mission in a couple of days and he wouldn’t have time to look after Hu Lili. He needed Mu Xiaocao to take responsibility for her impulsive actions.
Liu Guoqiang’s tone softened slightly, but he still commanded with a hint of coldness, “The doctor said Lili has a mild concussion and needs to stay in the hospital for observation for two days. If it weren’t for Lili being magnanimous, I would have sent you to the Military Court. I’m a bit busy these next two days, so you go to the hospital and look after Lili for a few days. Remember, her food should be light but nutritious. Bring her dirty clothes home to wash and take them back once they’re clean. Lili has a performance in ten days; you must serve her well and make sure it doesn’t affect her performance. Also…”
Liu Guoqiang prattled on. Mu Xiaocao placed the bowl on the rack and suddenly turned her head.
“Liu Guoqiang, I don’t have a heart big enough to serve someone who has nothing to do with me. Nor will I continue to endure a man who gives his salary to another woman for free. Liu Guoqiang, let’s get a divorce.”
Mu Xiaocao’s words left Liu Guoqiang stunned for several seconds.
He couldn’t believe the word “divorce” had come out of Mu Xiaocao’s mouth.
“What did you say? Say that again if you have the guts!”
“I said, I want to divorce you. Submit the application to the military.”
Liu Guoqiang’s heart suddenly grew chaotic.
Why a divorce?
He was already willing to consummate the marriage with her.
“What kind of nonsense are you making? Lili has already agreed not to hold your assault against you. What’s wrong with you going to serve her for two days? No matter who does something wrong, they should accept the punishment.”
“Am I making nonsense? You don’t like me at all. You married me only because your parents said I had decent features and was hardworking, and that I would surely manage the household well so you would have no worries while in the military. But in your heart, you’ve always hidden Hu Lili, haven’t you?”
The White Moonlight of years past, the cinnabar mole on a man’s heart—no matter how hard she tried, it could never be erased.
“You… what utter nonsense are you spouting? Lili and I are innocent!”
Mu Xiaocao suppressed the bitterness in her heart.
“Whether you’re innocent or not doesn’t matter anymore. Right now, I only want to divorce you.”
“I don’t like Lili. Do you still want a divorce?”
Heh, he didn’t like her?
If he didn’t like her, could he have spent a lifetime with her?
If he didn’t like her, would he have protected her at the cost of making his own wife suffer?
If he didn’t like her, would he have brought his child back to Nancheng for ten years just because Hu Lili said she liked children, ignoring his wife’s desperate pleas?