Mu Jianyu's jaw hardened. It was obvious that Li Xiuying was distancing herself from him even before they made their divorce public. He was the one who wanted the divorce but why did his heart ache when she turned her eyes away from him?
He took another good look at her appearance and that only made his displeasure apparent on his face. The cheongsam she was donning clung to her body almost like a second skin.
Li Xiuying arched a brow at him, waiting for him to say something but none came out. Instead, he looked aggrieved.
"Why are you wearing something like this?" came his muffled response. He'd seen men's eyes feasting over his wife's looks and it angered him to death.
Li Xiuying had to blink twice, not sure if she had heard him right. Was he questioning her outfit for tonight? Ridiculous! He would let his mistress dress provocatively in public and yet he was questioning her decency?
"I didn't know that my soon to be ex-husband still pays attention to what I do. Isn't this surprising, hubby?"
For the past weeks, he had ignored her. His face always had a frown whenever she touched him. Whenever he saw her in her work outfit which was filled with paint smears, the look of disgust on his face wasn't lost to her.
'You only like to see this side of me, don't you?' Li Xiuying thought grimly.
Why hadn't she realized this earlier? Why didn't she think that he only sought her because of the face that she had and the family that was supporting her?
Did he ever love her or did he only love what she could provide for him?
Her twin sister might have known from the start but didn't say anything for her sake but still, it pained Li Xiuying to finally see her husband's true colors. Ha, he'd only used her… and now that she'd served her purpose and wasn't able to give him a child that he wanted, Mu Jianyu cast her out in favor of his mistress.
In the end, what did Mu Jianyu truly love? Was it her face? Her money? Or the opportunities he would get by having her?
Li Xiuying chuckled inwardly. She knew the answer, alright. Her husband only loved and cared for himself. Such a selfish bastard that he was.
"Ying, why do you want to fight with me? Even if we're about to separate. Must you act this way?" He questioned her back.
Li Xiuying's face sank with utter disgust at her own husband. No wonder her twin sister disapproved of him.
"First of all, you are the one fighting with me. Weren't you the one who started this?" Her tone was filled with grief and betrayal, surprising Mu Jianyu. She had never shed a tear in front of him and he thought that she was strong enough to accept the blow he'd left with her with the divorce papers.
"At least, give me some face," Mu Jianyu held her arm painfully and hissed on her face. "You couldn't wait to throw yourself to Shen Zichen? Is that it?"
"Let me go," Li Xiuying resisted from his tight hold and stepped back. "Are you crazy?!"
Was he jealous? Did he even know how to feel jealous?
He was mad at her for not giving him face into public by arriving with Shen Zichen but did he give her some face when he took Lin Meirong as his mistress, impregnating her in the process?
Mu Jianyu looked at her with derision. He was blinded with jealousy upon seeing his wife with his sworn enemy.
"That's it, isn't it? The reason why you easily agreed to divorce me is because of Shen Zichen. Not yet divorced but you are already willing to climb on another man's bed?"
Li Xiuying was appalled by his words. Rage filled her chest and she couldn't stop herself as her hand landed on his face with a loud slap.
Did he even hear his own words? Wasn't he the one who asked for a divorce and yet he was the one questioning her relationship with Shen Zichen?
"What are you talking about, Jianyu? You know Brother Zichen is my long time friend. How can you say something like that?!"
She and Chuntao had known the Shen twins for a long time and people were already accustomed to seeing them together.
At those words, Mu Jianyu laughed with ridicule in his face.
"I'm not blind, Ying. I'm also a man. I know when a man is lusting after my wife,"
"Mu Jianyu!" Li Xiuying exclaimed.
"What? Still pretending you didn't know?" He taunted her with a chuckle. "Young Master Shen is madly in love with you but he couldn't have you. Do you know why? Because you are mine. You are my wife." He pointed out.
Li Xiuying was struck with revulsion over his behavior. Has he always been like this?
"It's only about you, Jianyu. I'm giving you the freedom you are asking for. What else do you want from me?" Her eyes stung with tears again but she refused to let them fall in his presence.
However, her pain-stricken face shocked her husband. Li Xiuying had failed to stop her tears as it rolled down her cheeks.
"What about me? Did your selfish mind think about what I will feel when you asked for a divorce? When you handed me the divorce papers, did you wonder how hurt I'll be? You left without wasting any time and abandoned me in our apartment. Did you even have any idea what I felt after that?"
"Ying, you—," His assumptions were incorrect. He'd hurt her worse than he expected.