Bella looked up, her eyes filled with despair.
The next moment, she took half a step back, her whole body trembling, unable to utter a word.
"You said I bought you, Bella, do you know how obedient the bought ones are?"
Edward's last sentence finally shattered all of Bella's composure.
Her eyes changed from despair to disbelief.
"Edward, do you know what you are saying?"
Upon hearing this, Edward looked up at her, slowly moved forward, and closed the distance between them.
"I said, the bought ones are more obedient than you."
In an instant, Bella seemed to wake up from a big dream, and her eyes gradually became clear.
Looking at Edward in front of her, she suddenly thought that when she first met him, he seemed to be like this.
A madman who would stop at nothing to achieve his goal.
Thinking of this, Bella almost laughed.
Did she actually expect a madman to love her properly?
"Edward, I have already paid you back the money, we have settled accounts. Go to the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow to get a divorce, I really can't play with you, I admit defeat."
"Please, let me go."
Bella said word by word, and took a deep look at Edward who was close at hand.
The emotions in this look, she herself could not explain.
After speaking, Bella did not wait for Edward's reaction and walked straight upstairs to start packing her belongings.
Edward did not reach out to stop her, just looking at her back in a trance.
After an unknown period of time, Bella came downstairs with her luggage, and he slowly said, "Don't go."
Bella's steps stopped, but she did not turn back.
"Don't go, don't you love me?"
Edward's voice sounded behind, but Bella suddenly wanted to laugh.
She shook her head, back to Edward: "If you don't want to divorce, then we will drag on like this, anyway, I can't continue to live with you for even a second. Edward, you are right, you are a madman, then what am I? I'm tired of being crazy now, let me go."
After speaking, Bella left the villa without any nostalgia.
The moonlight was not bright, Bella was walking on the roadside with her luggage, she walked unsteadily, and Edward also did not follow out.
The next day, at the company.
Edward stood in front of the French window in his office, the words Bella said last night echoing in his mind.
Those words were like a sharp knife, deeply engraved in his heart.
"Mr. Gu, there is a lady outside to see you."
The polite voice of the assistant sounded, and Edward turned his head to look: "Who?"
"It's a Miss Li with a child."
Hearing this, Edward frowned deeply.
"I won't see her."
He no longer looked at the assistant, just staring at the mobile phone in his hand, the screen was full of his unanswered calls to Bella.
As if not admitting his fate, Edward's slender fingers pressed the dial button again, and the other side was still busy.
His hand holding the mobile phone hung straight down, for a long time, the mobile phone received a text message.
Edward came back to his senses and looked at the screen.
"I know you won't agree to a divorce, and this is the last time I will contact you. I wish you buy a more obedient one in the future."
It was sent by Bella.
Edward actually wanted to laugh at this moment, the sourness in his heart was a feeling he had never had before.
He grew up with the best of everything, such a sourness and sadness rarely appeared in him, Edward.
It was like an invincible hunter, but now someone has shot his heart heavily.
The office's French window is the bright sun, Edward was blinding for a moment by the sunlight, his hand tightly holding the mobile phone, the next second, he dialed Bella's phone again.
But what answered Edward was no longer a series of busy signals, but the mechanical cold female voice.
"Sorry, the number you dialed is not in service, please check and dial again."
The summer nights always carried a hint of stuffiness. Edward sat in the car and unconsciously turned his head to look at the passenger seat, only to find it empty.
A wave of irritability washed over him, and his grip on the steering wheel tightened.
After a while, Edward exhaled deeply, took out his phone, and dialed a friend's number.
"What's up, Mr. Gu, you still remember me?"
His friend's teasing voice echoed in his ear, finally giving Edward a sense of reality.
"Let's go out for a drink, I'm feeling annoyed."
Edward's voice was cold, devoid of any warmth.
"Got it, see you at the old place."
After hanging up, the traffic light had just turned green. Edward stepped on the gas pedal and sped along the deserted asphalt road.
After parking, Edward walked straight to the dimly lit bar, the smell of cheap perfume was so strong that it almost blinded him.
"What could possibly bother our Mr. Gu?"
It wasn't long before his friend appeared across from Edward.
Upon hearing this, Edward looked up, glanced at the friend indifferently, and without saying a word, he picked up his glass and drained it in one go.
It took a while before Edward recounted the events between him and Bella, following the club's lights and the noisy music.
His friend's expression changed from "tell me more" to "please stop, I really can't listen anymore."
When Edward finished speaking, he looked at his friend's dazed expression and gave him some time to process.
Time ticked by, and his friend remained silent. Edward finally lost his patience, stretched out his long leg, and gently nudged his friend: "Give me your thoughts."
Hearing this, his friend snapped out of his daze. He closed his open mouth, swallowed hard, and after a long while, finally spoke: "Hell is empty, Mr. Gu is here on Earth."
Not sure if he was satisfied with this opinion, Edward smacked his lips: "Forget it, your opinion is not important either. What should we do now? Come up with a plan."
"Where could she have gone? She's been with you for so many years, and she's repaid you the money, without a house, a car, or a job. Mr. Gu, before you worry about whether she can be with you, you should worry about her personal safety and living security."
Edward didn't say anything, just frowned deeply, looking at the colorful bar, thinking about something.
On the other side.
Bella sat in the hotel, staring at the warm yellow light in a daze.
She flipped through her phone, realizing she had no one to rely on for so many years.
Although Edward was a madman, he had never lacked in providing material life for her over the years. The sudden withdrawal not only made Bella feel unreal but also at a loss.
Finally, she made up her mind and dialed her friend's phone.
"Hello? Bella?"
The voice on the other end of the phone was not heard for a long time, Bella was a bit nervous: "It's me, I'm getting divorced from Edward."
"Where are you now?"
"In a hotel... I wanted to ask if there's any job you could introduce?"
"Send me your location, I'll pick you up tomorrow, and we'll talk about the rest when we meet."
"Thank you."
After hanging up, Bella felt much better, she wasn't left with nothing.
Ethan was her childhood friend, but their contact had been reduced after she got married. The sudden intrusion would definitely bring a lot of inconvenience.
Bella frowned, feeling ridiculous.
But there was no other way.
The next day, early morning.
Bella didn't sleep well, and when the first ray of sunlight shone through the window, she woke up.
Seeing the unfamiliar decoration of the hotel, Bella was stunned before realizing she had already separated from Edward.
She smiled bitterly and shook her head.
The next second, Ethan's call came in.
"Are you up?" Ethan's voice sounded very sunny, as if deliberately trying to give Bella a good mood.
"Mm." Bella replied.
"I'm downstairs at the hotel, pack up and come down."
"Okay."
After hanging up, Bella sat up from the bed, neatly tied her black hair behind her head, packed her belongings, and walked out of the room.
It was the height of summer, even the morning sun was very hot. She stepped out of the hotel and saw Ethan waiting by the roadside.
In her memory, Ethan was just a young lad, but now he was wearing a well-tailored suit, with neat black short hair that partially covered his eyebrows and eyes, but added more depth.
Feeling Bella's gaze, Ethan slowly looked up.
"Long time no see."