"What use is rank? Not to mention he's dead, he raised a daughter who is stupid and foolish. I asked her to buy a bedsheet and she did—no respectable young woman does that, she’s truly shameless!"

"Sigh, having fought wars outside for so many years, whether she is Gu Anguo’s seed, well, that’s hard to say!"

Listening to these words, Gu Elena’s thin body trembled with rage, but she did not take a single step forward.

Chapter 34

It wasn't that she didn't want to argue, but that no matter what she said, these people wouldn't believe her.

The stigma had already fallen upon her head, and no one cared whether these things were true or not.

At first, Gu Elena could maintain the cleanliness and order of the home and eat her three meals a day, but gradually, she stopped going out, stopped eating, and stopped waiting for Julian to return.

Most of her time every day was spent lying quietly in bed, not eating or drinking, not moving at all.

Julian watched her wither away day by day.

He told himself that Gu Elena shouldn't be like this; even in a dream, she should be beautiful and sun-facing, just like the flourishing flowers on her balcony, full of infinite vitality.

Not like this, listless and lifeless.

Julian panicked. He wanted to wake Gu Elena, but his hands passed through her body time and time again.

"Wake up, Gu Elena? Wake up!"

I don't know if Gu Elena heard his voice, but she struggled to get up from the bed, only to collapse abruptly when her feet touched the ground.

Julian wanted to catch her, but she struck the floor directly.

Fortunately, the Julian in the dream returned.

It had been three years; this was the first time he had returned to this house. In the past, even when giving Gu Elena living expenses, he had always had the guard at the gate pass them on.

But he didn't discover Gu Elena’s state immediately; instead, he was surprised by the heavy dust in the room.

"Gu Elena? Where are you? Do you not clean up when you're at home?"

"Gu Elena?"

No one responded; Julian frowned in irritation.

"What kind of tantrum are you throwing now? Can't you just say what you want? If others in the compound hadn't asked me why they hadn't seen you for over half a year, I wouldn't have known you could let your life end up like this!"

The harsh accusations from the Julian in the dream grew louder and louder, but the Julian experiencing the dream only felt a chill rushing from his feet to his crown.

Everything here was too real.

If he didn't know that Gu Elena wasn't that kind of person, if he hadn't seen everything Gu Elena had endured, he really would have acted exactly like that other Julian.

He suddenly began to feel afraid—afraid that these things had actually happened.

Finally, Julian discovered Gu Elena collapsed on the floor. A flash of panic crossed his eyes; he hurried to her side to lift her up, his voice trembling imperceptibly.

"Gu Elena? Gu Elena, what’s wrong? Wake up!"

Gu Elena’s cheeks were sunken, her eyes closed tightly, her thin body appearing to be nothing but a frame of bones.

But after Julian rushed her to the hospital, a series of examinations revealed no illness; they only said she was suffering from malnutrition.

Not knowing what he had thought of, Julian’s brows furrowed deeper, even showing signs of irritability.

Gu Elena slowly opened her eyes. When she saw Julian by the bed, a flash of uncontrollable joy appeared in her eyes, but the next second, she heard him say—

"Gu Elena, let’s get a divorce."

The light in her eyes went out.

And Julian lowered his head, not looking at her once from beginning to end.

Gu Elena’s lips trembled, but she couldn't even ask "why." She simply suppressed her sobs and said, "Okay."

There was a long silence in the ward.

Julian’s voice sounded again: "You... don't need to move; we won't go back. I will send you living expenses on time. Do whatever you want."

After saying this, he turned and walked out of the ward.

Julian looked at everything in front of him in disbelief. He didn't understand why he would divorce Gu Elena in his dream. Clearly, his care and concern were real, so why... why divorce?

He turned to look at Gu Elena and saw her wringing the sheets with both hands. Bean-sized tears rolled down her cheeks, hitting the snow-white quilt in silence; she was so careful that she didn't even dare to make a sound while crying.

Julian tried desperately to help her wipe away her tears, but his hands passed through her body over and over again.

However, neither of them knew.

This was the last time Gu Elena ever saw Julian in her previous life.

Chapter 35

When she returned from the hospital, Gu Elena looked as dejected and lifeless as a wandering soul with nowhere to report its grief.

But in reality, Julian felt that he was the true wandering soul; he followed beside her, unable to offer even the simplest comfort.

Clang.

The door opened and closed. An uninvited guest was sitting on the sofa.

Xu Rou was wearing a pair of shiny leather shoes and a fashionable pair of bell-bottom pants. The fabric of her top was layered and draped over her chest, creating a stylized effect. Her bangs were curled into a perfectly set arc swept to one side, her hair tied into a low ponytail, and glasses perched on the bridge of her nose.

The room was filled with the bitter scent of coffee.

Her lips, painted in bright lipstick, curled into a light, disdainful, and mocking arc. She stirred her spoon, distracted.

"Gu Elena, long time no see."

With that, she raised her coffee cup in the air, making a toast to Gu Elena from a distance.

Gu Elena stood blankly in place; her dull brain couldn't even process that Xu Rou was taunting her. She nodded blankly: "You’re back. Do you want to eat?"

In the past, when the two of them were preparing for the college entrance examination, Xu Rou would always recall her "diligence in study" as an excuse to demand that Gu Elena cook for her. If Gu Elena didn't do as she asked, she would add oil and vinegar to her complaints to Julian.

What followed was always Julian’s reprimand—

"You’re idle and incompetent, and you want to hinder others’ progress? Xiao Rou’s studies are the most important thing right now; can’t you do a little more of the household chores? Or are you deliberately trying to influence her?"

Gu Elena shook her head, attempting to chase away the auditory hallucinations.

"No need." Xu Rou pinched her nose and frowned, looking as if the word "disgust" was practically written on her face.

"Who would want to eat anything you make?"

Gu Elena froze in place, her hands helplessly tugging at her faded hem, her head bowed. She looked utterly lifeless.

"Brother Julian mentioned divorce to you, right? That’s right, after all, now that I’m back, it’s time for you to give up the status of the Cheng family’s daughter-in-law. You enjoyed three years of freebies; you must be thrilled, right?"

Her numb nerves jumped; Gu Elena vaguely knew she was being mocked, but when she looked up, her eyes remained dark and waveless.

Xu Rou frowned, as if this feeling of punching a pile of cotton was highly unsatisfying.

"When your mother died, were you this pathetic too?"

Gu Elena’s eyes widened slightly, as if it took a long time to understand her words: "Mom... is dead?"

She repeated it slowly. Suddenly, her heart gave a sharp, stabbing pain. She curled up and squatted down, tears hitting the ground in large droplets.

"How could this happen..."

Seeing her like this, Xu Rou only gave a "tch" and turned back to sit on the sofa, crossing her legs.

"You and that son of Wang Qiang’s are a perfect match—one is an idiot, one is a fool. A match made in heaven."

"How else could your mother have died?" The words were on the tip of her tongue, but her eyes rolled, and she changed her tune: "Died of illness, obviously. Nobody told you? You’re really too unfilial."

"But now that you know, don't you plan to go back and check?"

Xu Rou’s words woke Gu Elena up. She hurried to get up, stumbling as she ran back to the bedroom, taking out all the living expenses Julian had given her over the past three years in one go.

A thick stack wrapped in a handkerchief—dozens of hundred-yuan bills, over a hundred "ten-yuan" notes, interspersed with scattered coins. Xu Rou’s eyes turned red at the sight.

"You, someone who doesn't do anything at home, actually have more living expenses than me, who is actually in school."