Xu Miyu stood frozen outside the door, utterly stunned.
She stared at the man before her—still tall and handsome, dressed in his usual white shirt and dress pants, with the collar and cuffs unbuttoned and loose as always. He seemed unchanged in every way, yet now he felt like the most unfamiliar person in her eyes.
Nie Yucheng’s surprise was no less than Xu Miyu’s. He stared at her face, unable to snap out of his daze for a long moment, not even able to utter a single syllable of her name.
Behind him, Lu Zhenzhen reacted with a mix of surprise and barely concealed schadenfreude, letting out a mocking "Oh ho!" at the sight of Xu Miyu.
This time, she wasn’t wearing a bathrobe but a loose-fitting dress. Her skin was radiantly fair and glowing, her face plump with the collagen of a well-nourished life. She looked as fresh and vibrant as a flower, a stark contrast to Xu Miyu, who appeared dull, aged, and lifeless, like a withering old tree.
Lu Zhenzhen stood gracefully behind Nie Yucheng and spoke in a lazy, gentle tone, "Yucheng, don’t block the door. Let the housekeeper in to clean the room."
Nie Yucheng glanced back at her and whispered sharply, "Don’t stir up trouble!"
Lu Zhenzhen’s face instantly darkened. She stepped forward, hands on her hips. Nie Yucheng seemed wary of her, moving aside to avoid a direct confrontation.
Lu Zhenzhen laughed, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "I’m just asking the housekeeper to do her job. How is that stirring up trouble, right, Mi Yu?"
She deliberately made the term "Mi Yu" sound sweet and condescending.
Xu Miyu watched Lu Zhenzhen flaunt her smugness so brazenly.
She knew Lu Zhenzhen was exacting revenge in a way only the two of them understood: Didn’t you say you had control over this man beside us? But look at you now—once so proud, yet now you’re here to serve me and clean my room. And this man? He belongs to me now.
Xu Miyu suppressed the turmoil in her heart. She refused to dwell on what those emotions truly were.
She wouldn’t allow herself to regret or retreat. She had to face these two with dignity, even if her current profession seemed insignificant in their eyes.
She asked calmly, "Do you need the room cleaned?" She tried to sound composed, but a hint of hoarseness still escaped her voice.
"No!"
"Of course!"
Nie Yucheng and Lu Zhenzhen answered simultaneously, their responses completely opposite.
"Mi Yu, you don’t need to clean the room!" Nie Yucheng stepped closer to the door, his tone urgent, as if he couldn’t bear to see her humiliate herself in front of them.
Xu Miyu stared blankly at Nie Yucheng. His eyes seemed to reflect deep anguish, and he made no effort to hide that it was for her sake.
She turned her gaze to Lu Zhenzhen.
It was strange—somehow, she had made Nie Yucheng so wary of her. As soon as Lu Zhenzhen put her hands on her hips again, Nie Yucheng halted his steps, afraid to approach her, as if fearing he might harm her.
With that simple gesture, Lu Zhenzhen had silently subdued him.Then she turned her head, flashing a sweet smile, and said to Xu Miyu: "Mi Yu, if I asked you to do a full cleaning, you'd probably say I was deliberately making things difficult for you. How about you just wipe the table and take out the trash for me?"
Xu Miyu glanced at Nie Yucheng blocking her way and said flatly, "Please step aside."
Nie Yucheng remained standing still. Lu Zhenzhen came over and pulled him away. As Xu Miyu entered the room, she noticed a flicker of pain creasing Nie Yucheng's brow.
She quietly went to wipe the table. Lu Zhenzhen walked over and sat in the leather chair beside the table, tilting her head to look at Xu Miyu with a tone full of concern: "Mi Yu, I remember you used to spend your days watching dramas and taking care of your skin. Lately, it seems you haven't been maintaining it well, have you? Your skin now looks like it's pushing you toward forty."
Xu Miyu acted as if she hadn't heard her, neither responding nor looking at her, deftly moving a cup of water aside to wipe the table clean.
After wiping the table, she crouched down to gather the trash bag beneath it.
Lu Zhenzhen looked at the cup of water on the table, lifted it by the handle, and raised it.
As the cup passed over Xu Miyu's head, Lu Zhenzhen's hand trembled.
The water in the cup spilled directly onto Xu Miyu's head.
Xu Miyu, crouching on the floor collecting trash, suddenly felt her vision blur. She closed her eyes, sensing the warm water trickling down her forehead along with her hair.
In an instant, she understood what had happened.
Lu Zhenzhen was retaliating for that cup of water she had once thrown.
When she opened her eyes, droplets still clung to her eyelashes. Still crouched on the floor, she lifted her head to look at Lu Zhenzhen.
"Sorry, Mi Yu, my hand slipped," Lu Zhenzhen said gently and amiably, shaking the cup in her hand as she offered a hollow apology.
From the look in Lu Zhenzhen's eyes and her expression, Xu Miyu could see the deliberate intent—the satisfaction of humiliating her in front of her ex-husband.
Xu Miyu quickly thought that if she impulsively stood up and threw a cup of water back at Lu Zhenzhen, she would likely lose her job.
So she decided to retaliate in a different way—to gamble.
She would test whether Nie Yucheng, who had moved in with another woman so soon after their divorce, had completely severed his feelings for her.
Still crouching there, she turned to look at Nie Yucheng. She knew droplets hung from her eyelashes like teardrops. She fixed her gaze with an expression of hurt, resentment, and restraint, saying nothing with her mouth but everything with her eyes through those tear-like droplets.
She realized she was not without cunning. Using Lu Zhenzhen's own methods against her seemed more satisfying than throwing a cup of water back.
Instantly, Xu Miyu saw profound pain in Nie Yucheng's eyes—a pain that made him rebuke Lu Zhenzhen.
Then he quickly stood up, fetched a towel, pulled Xu Miyu to her feet, and, right in front of Lu Zhenzhen, began drying her wet hair.
Xu Miyu thought, That's enough. This is enough. If Nie Yucheng touches me any further, I'll feel sick.
She raised her hand to push Nie Yucheng away and took a step back.
Lu Zhenzhen stood up from her chair, tears welling in her eyes as she sobbed, "Yucheng, you're my husband, and I'm your wife. How can you be so intimate and protective of another woman right in front of me?" Her demeanor was one of someone driven to the brink of rage, panic, and jealousy.Nie Yucheng glanced at her and replied in a low voice, "Lu Zhenzhen, that's enough!"
Xu Miyu saw these words rapidly transform Lu Zhenzhen's originally delicate expression. Her fair, beautiful face twisted into something ferocious. Xu Miyu felt a flicker of satisfaction in her heart.
But she didn't get to see whether Lu Zhenzhen would ultimately erupt into a full-blown scene. She found herself abruptly pulled by the arm toward the door by Nie Yucheng—too fast for her to react, too forceful for her to resist.
He dragged her out of the doorway. But she realized she wasn't the only one being expelled from the room—because Nie Yucheng had followed her out.
He pulled her into the hallway, practically flinging her against the wall. Then he stood before her, trapping her between himself and the wall, his face full of pain and confusion as he asked, "Why have you sunk to doing this kind of work? What happened to the money I gave you during the divorce? Did your mother take it all? Are your mother, sister, and brother bullying you again?"
He fired question after question, his voice trembling as if one more word might bring him to tears.
Xu Miyu laughed. Her smile was laced with sarcasm as she told Nie Yucheng, "You're so concerned about another woman—your wife is listening from inside the room."
The pain on Nie Yucheng's face deepened.
He called her name, his voice hoarse: "Miyu, I'll give you my half of the money from before the divorce too. Don't do this kind of work anymore. I can't bear to see you doing this, I can't bear... can't bear to see you suffer like this!" His eyes reddened.
Xu Miyu hardened her heart, refusing to be moved by Nie Yucheng's words. This ex-husband who had immediately remarried his mistress after their divorce—any lingering affection he showed now was utterly cheap.
"Why would I want your money?" Xu Miyu looked at Nie Yucheng, calm and cold. "What's wrong with this job? A job where I support myself with my own hands—is it more shameful than being your full-time housekeeper before?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a figure rushed out from the room.
Lu Zhenzhen had emerged with another glass of water, intending to throw it in Xu Miyu's face once more.
As she swung her arm, Nie Yucheng turned and shielded Xu Miyu.
The water splashed against his chin. He didn't bother wiping it, letting the droplets drip as he looked at Lu Zhenzhen and asked, "Have you lost your mind, Lu Zhenzhen?"
Tears welled in Lu Zhenzhen's eyes, her appearance fragile, but the words that sprang from her mouth grew harsher with each sentence: "Nie Yucheng, I think you're the one who's lost your mind! If you dare give her money, I'll immediately sue her for embezzling our marital assets as the other woman! Xu Miyu, I at least call you 'sister' out of respect, but if you keep this up, don't blame me for reporting you to your supervisor for seducing someone else's husband!"
Listening to this, Xu Miyu couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.
What Lu Zhenzhen was accusing her of now was exactly what Lu Zhenzhen herself had done to someone else's husband before. While others cried thief to catch a thief, she was crying "homewrecker" to catch a homewrecker.
She glanced at Nie Yucheng again—he looked torn between the two women, anxious, helpless, and aggrieved.
Xu Miyu thought how ridiculous it was. Men always seemed to have so many emotions they didn't deserve. She was the one they had pushed into this wretched situation, yet he acted as if he were the one suffering some great injustice.In the next moment, a resolute expression finally surfaced on Nie Yucheng's face. He had made his choice between the two women. Turning to Lu Zhenzhen, he lowered his voice and commanded, "Go back to the room now!"
As he spoke, he raised his hand toward her shoulder, seemingly intending to push her into the room. But as if remembering something, he hesitated and merely rested his hand briefly on her shoulder before withdrawing it.
Lu Zhenzhen's eyes were red-rimmed, her voice thick with tears. "Are you going to push me, Yucheng? Fine, go ahead and push me! Push me and the baby down together!"
Xu Miyu's ears rang with shock. She finally understood what Nie Yucheng had been wary of from the moment the door opened until now.
Nie Yucheng didn't advance further, but his voice remained firm. He glared coldly at Lu Zhenzhen and told her word by word, "You, right now, get into the room!"
Seeing Nie Yucheng's expression, Lu Zhenzhen knew she had pushed him to his limit. She didn't dare confront him further, knowing this man responded better to softness than hardness. She was already the legitimate Mrs. Nie, while Xu Miyu was just a discarded wife past her prime. She would give them this space for now—she could deal with Xu Miyu slowly later.
She shot Xu Miyu a fierce glance before entering the room.
Nie Yucheng closed the door behind her. Then he grabbed Xu Miyu's arm and pulled her a considerable distance down the hallway, stopping in front of a fire station. He clearly didn't want Lu Zhenzhen to overhear their conversation again.
Although this spot was some distance from that room, it was close to the elevator bank and also the main thoroughfare to the executive lounge, making it likely for passersby to appear. Xu Miyu wanted to break free from Nie Yucheng quickly, not wanting to become gossip material as someone seen pulling at her ex-husband.
But no matter how she struggled, Nie Yucheng refused to let go. It seemed he had never held her this forcefully before, almost with a desperate determination.
When Xu Miyu struggled again, she seemed to provoke Nie Yucheng. He suddenly pressed her against the wall, pinning her wrists above her head, trapping both her arms and her body against the wall.
Xu Miyu was nearly furious. She couldn't understand what right or standing Nie Yucheng thought he had to treat her like this now.
A soft "ding" sounded from the elevator.
Several people emerged from the elevator, their voices growing closer as they approached. They appeared to be heading toward the executive lounge.
Xu Miyu lowered her voice, a pleading tone creeping in. "Nie Yucheng, let go! Someone's coming!"
Nie Yucheng breathed heavily, bargaining with her. "Fine, but you can't run away!"
Xu Miyu could already see dress shoes turning the corner. Anxious, she agreed.
Nie Yucheng finally released her hands. But he refused to step back, remaining close in front of her, breathing heavily.
To an uninformed observer, it would look like he was angry with her—so angry he could barely control his emotions, taking deep breaths to calm himself.
The group of people approached, passed by them, continued past, and headed toward the executive lounge.Xu Miyu kept her head lowered throughout. She didn't dare lift her face, afraid to let the passing business professionals witness her and her ex-husband's disgraceful state. Watching the pairs of shiny black leather shoes stepping across the carpet one by one, it felt as though each step was trampling over her self-respect, leaving her with an inescapable sense of humiliation.
Finally, those people disappeared into the executive lounge.
Xu Miyu raised her head and met Nie Yucheng's bloodshot eyes.
He reached out to touch her cheek, his voice hoarse and choked: "Miyu, why have you lost so much weight? Why do you look so haggard? Haven't you been doing well?"
Xu Miyu immediately turned her face away, avoiding his hand. She made no attempt to conceal her current disgust toward him, roughly wiping the spot on her cheek he had touched, clearly telling him she found him dirty.
Nie Yucheng froze in place.
After withdrawing her hand, Xu Miyu asked coldly: "Nie Yucheng, do you have anything else to say? If not, step aside. I need to get back to work."
As she tried to leave, Nie Yucheng hurriedly blocked her path, stammering incoherently: "Miyu, she's pregnant, that's why I married her! The water pipe at home burst, so I came to stay at the hotel. I didn't know you were working on this floor... as a service staff, otherwise I would never have stayed on this floor, never let her humiliate you! I'm sorry Miyu, I..."
Xu Miyu interrupted him. Now she just felt exhausted, too tired to even maintain her coldness toward him.
"Nie Yucheng, stop explaining these things to me. It's meaningless. Let's just leave each other alone."
She spoke wearily, her gaze when looking at Nie Yucheng like that toward a complete stranger - calm to the point of indifference, distant enough to sting.
All other words Nie Yucheng might have said were choked back by Xu Miyu's look. He stared at her blankly, more surprised than hurt, as if he couldn't comprehend how Xu Miyu could separate herself from him so completely.
"Step aside." Xu Miyu said word by word.
Nie Yucheng was intimidated by her like this. He involuntarily moved aside.
Xu Miyu walked away immediately, her back frail yet resolute. She never once looked back at him along the way.
That afternoon, Ji Feng had scheduled a meeting with potential acquisition partners at the executive lounge. He disliked others entering his personal space, hence the choice of venue.
As the appointed time approached, he and Xue Rui took the elevator downstairs.
Arriving at the executive floor, they coincidentally encountered the other party emerging from another elevator. The two groups merged and proceeded toward the executive lounge together.
As they turned the corner, an unexpected scene unfolded before them.
A tall man had pinned a female service staff against the wall, gripping both her wrists and holding them high above her head.
The service staff seemed to be pleading faintly.
The man released her.
As their group passed by the man and woman, the female service staff kept her head lowered, appearing guilty and cowardly. The man was breathing heavily, seemingly suppressing his anger with some agitation.
With just a brief glance, Ji Feng had already identified who this man and woman were.
His eyes filled with contempt.
After passing the pair, Xue Rui leaned closer to Ji Feng and asked quietly: "Boss, that's Xu... that woman. Her husband seems to be demanding money from her again. Should I..." He left the sentence unfinished, but Ji Feng understood his meaning: Should I go help that Xu woman?Ji Feng continued walking without pause, slanting a sharp glance at Xue Rui.
His voice was soft when he spoke, but the contempt and disgust within it were heavy: "Are you that full and idle? She's the one willing to stay trapped in that rotten marriage without divorcing. What's there for you to help her with?"
Seeing Ji Feng's extreme disgust and disdain when mentioning Xu Miyu, Xue Rui immediately fell silent, not daring to say more.
Their business partner Wei Siyuan, walking behind them, only saw them whispering something but couldn't make out the specifics. Relying on intuition, he guessed that Ji Feng was disgusted by the improper behavior of the man and woman in the hallway earlier.
His face immediately flushed with embarrassment. As soon as they entered the lounge and took their seats, he said to Ji Feng: "Apologies for affecting your mood earlier, President Ji. The hotel is usually quite elegant and quiet—we don't normally have situations like today where customers and staff cause messy scenes in the hallway. I'll call the housekeeping manager right away to discuss this matter and ensure strict handling and improved management going forward!"
Ji Feng responded lazily: "No need." Making a special point of mentioning it would only give that man and woman undue attention.
They weren't worthy of his notice.
Xue Rui chimed in alongside: "President Wei, President Ji has a meeting later. Should we quickly go over the specific issues involved in this acquisition matter? We've been working from the hotel recently and have compiled quite a few questions about the acquisition."
Wei Siyuan promptly gathered his focus, saying, "Yes, yes."
After breaking free from Nie Yucheng's entanglement, Xu Miyu first put away the linen cart, then ducked into the restroom.
She looked at her reflection in the mirror—the bangs she'd originally swept to the sides were now damp and messy, plastered against her forehead. Her already sallow complexion appeared even more aged after being splashed with water.
Staring at her reflection, she thought: How did the person in there become so wretched and pathetic?
Pulling a few tissues from the dispenser, she slowly wiped the water from her forehead.
As she wiped, she kept watching the mirror. The surface seemed to reflect Lu Zhenzhen's radiant face—young, beautiful, with firm, elastic skin.
Lu Zhenzhen seemed to be mocking her, asking how she'd become such a faded woman.
She tossed the wet tissues aside, letting her hands hang at her sides, slowly clenching them into fists.
What should she do? After separating from Nie Yucheng, it seemed like she was the only one living poorly.
It felt like before, she could stand on moral high ground and despise Lu Zhenzhen freely. But now, she had to endure this homewrecker's condescending gaze, orders, and humiliation.
It seemed they were all living glamorous, comfortable lives, while she alone suffered like the living dead.
She watched Lu Zhenzhen's image in the mirror, laughing arrogantly and triumphantly at her.
Her fists at her sides clenched tighter and tighter.
How had she let her life come to this? How had she allowed herself to become so degraded?
Suddenly, a voice came over the walkie-talkie. Someone was calling for housekeeping to check a room where the smoke alarm had gone off.
Everyone quickly reported their locations.
Xu Miyu was closest to that room, so she was dispatched to check the situation.
Without even bothering to fix her bangs, she just swept them messily to the sides and hurried out of the restroom.
She told herself to set aside all the chaotic emotions—the urgent task now was to quickly check whether the room with the alarm had a fire.It turned out to be a false alarm, but not entirely.
A young girl had been hiding in the room, preparing to livestream a charcoal-burning suicide with her boyfriend over a relationship issue.
Although no lives were actually lost, Xu Miyu was badly shaken.
She tried to call for backup using her walkie-talkie, but the heartbroken girl, though grief-stricken, was surprisingly strong. She rushed forward and snatched the device from Xu Miyu, pleading, "Young lady, please don’t call anyone. I don’t want people to come and laugh at my relationship troubles!"
Those words struck a chord in Xu Miyu’s heart.
She, too, had been hurt to the core by love—why not help another in the same plight?
She promised the girl she would retrieve the walkie-talkie and replied into it: "I've checked. They're using moxibustion. No issues here."
Then she set down the device and looked at the girl.
She didn't dare leave the room, fearing the girl might resume burning charcoal.
The girl paid her no mind, wholly absorbed in crying, shouting, pleading, and raging at the boy on the phone before begging again.
From this chaotic torrent of intense emotions, Xu Miyu pieced together fragments of what had transpired.
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