The room was silent.
Li Xinyue sat on the edge of the bed, trying to calm the storm inside her heart.
One month.
She had already been married to Gu Zhen for one month.
In her previous life, this first month was when she built the wall between them.
She refused to talk to him.
She avoided him.
She treated his kindness as if it was a burden.
She remembered every cold expression she gave him.
Every harsh word.
Every time she made him feel unwanted.
Her eyes became wet.
“Gu Zhen…”
She whispered his name.
For years, she thought he was a heartless man.
But now she knew.
The cold general everyone feared was the man who loved her the most.
A knock came from the door.
“Madam, General Gu has returned.”
Her heart tightened.
Returned?
She looked at the time.
In her previous life, Gu Zhen had just returned from a mission today.
And instead of welcoming him, she had complained that he was always absent.
She had never asked if he was injured.
Never asked if he was tired.
This time would be different.
The entrance of the Gu family mansion.
A black military vehicle stopped outside.
Gu Zhen stepped out.
He wore his military uniform, his expression calm and serious.
To everyone else, he was the powerful general who could not be approached.
But Li Xinyue noticed something different.
His face looked tired.
There was a small injury near his hand.
Her heart ached.
He had been hurt.
And she never noticed before.
“Gu Zhen.”
Her voice made him stop.
He looked at her.
For a moment, surprise flashed in his eyes.
His wife rarely waited for him.
Especially not with concern in her eyes.
“Why are you outside?” he asked.
Li Xinyue looked at his hand.
“You are injured.”
Gu Zhen lowered his eyes.
“It’s nothing.”
In her previous life, she would have believed that.
Now she knew.
Gu Zhen always said it was nothing because he didn’t want her to worry.
“Let me treat it.”
The words shocked him.
Even Li Xinyue herself felt strange saying them.
Gu Zhen stared at her silently.
The woman in front of him felt unfamiliar.
Not because she looked different.
But because her eyes no longer held rejection.
For the first time since their marriage…
She looked at him like she cared.
“Xinyue…”
His voice was low.
“Why are you suddenly being kind to me?”
Her heart tightened.
Because she knew the truth.
Because she had lost him once.
But she couldn’t tell him yet.
So she only smiled softly.
“Because I realized something.”
“What?”
Li Xinyue looked at him.
“That I should have treated my husband better.”
Gu Zhen froze.
The cold general who faced danger without fear suddenly didn’t know how to respond.
And far away…
Someone watching their relationship was already preparing a new plan.
Because Li Xinyue had changed.
And that change would destroy everything Lin Meiqi had planned.