Pain coursed through her veins and into her brain, instantly snapping her back to reality.
Although she had little contact with Han Jingnian, she was no naive maiden, so it didn't take her long to realize what the weight on her body was about.
It was Jingnian... Hadn't he left? Had he never left? Hadn't he said he only came back for his files?
Doubt rushed in, like a tide, rapidly flooding Xia Wan'an's mind.
Before she could figure it all out, the pain radiating from her waist interrupted her thoughts once again.
Today's Jingnian was astonishingly different from his usual self… He was always aloof, without exchanging a word with her, yet his treatment of her, while not affectionate, was at least not unbearably harsh, aside from their first time together. Today, however, he was somehow different. His toughness was too heavy, his actions too rough, as if he were a people-eating beast... He truly hurt her, more than even their first time together…
She remembered their first time. The pain had brought her close to tears. After she vocalized her distress, he had lessened his force considerably. This time, though, when she could no longer bear the pain, she trembled as she spoke, repeating the same words she had said during their first time together: "That... hurts..."
Those three words made up all they had ever spoken to each other in the six months since their marriage.
Somehow, a surge of bitterness welled up in Xia Wan'an's heart. She had assumed that by uttering those words, just like the first time, he would become more gentle. But she was wrong. Not only did his gentleness not manifest itself, he became even more aggressive. She sensed that he was angry, punishing her, but she could not figure out why. She had not provoked him...
He showed no signs of relenting. Unable to bear any more pain, she began to struggle. This was probably the first time she had resisted since their marriage. He was clearly taken aback, and then she was once again pinned down under his weight. There was no way she could match his strength. The difference in physical prowess between male and female left her feeling like a fish on a chopping block, utterly helpless.
How it all ended, she wasn't sure. All she knew was that when she woke up the next day and instinctively turned to look at the other side of the bed, it was perfectly made.
Once again, he had left. And not just in the morning after the previous night had ended. He hadn't even slept at home before leaving.
Xia Wan'an stared blankly at the empty side of the bed for a while before she attempted to get up.
Moving was when she realized her body was as achy as though she had been taken apart and put back together. Luckily, it was the weekend, and she had nothing else to do. After scrounging something to eat and filling her stomach, she returned to sleep.
When she woke up in the afternoon, Xia Wan'an felt much better. She typically went grocery shopping for the week over the weekend, so after freshening up a bit, she headed out.
Although she couldn't eat much on her own, she had still managed to fill two large bags with groceries.
In the elevator, a middle-aged woman saw her struggling with her bags and kindly asked, "Young lady, which floor do you live on?"
Xia Wan'an thanked the woman and told her the floor she lived on.
Given this was a high-end apartment complex with only one unit per floor, providing ample privacy, the middle-aged woman looked at her in puzzlement after helping her press the elevator button: "You're going to the 27th floor?"