Volume One, Chapter 45: She Rejected His Kindness

"Jiang Shuwei, where did you go tonight?"

Hek Jingcheng did not start a fight right away; instead, deciding to give her a chance to confess, he asked indifferently.

Jiang Shuwei's eyes widened in shock. This was the very first time he had ever cared about her whereabouts.

"I've been working overtime at the studio every day, I haven't been anywhere else." Jiang Shuwei answered him almost without thinking.

Anyway, he was only asking out of momentary curiosity, not from the bottom of his heart, so she could just brush him off.

"Oh?" He Jingcheng's nerves tightened fiercely, his gaze fixed sharply on her figure.

Her slender silhouette was clad in a white silk slip dress. The smooth texture and two thin shoulder straps clearly outlined her graceful and delicate figure. He Jingcheng only just realized that, without him noticing, that little girl had grown up; she now possessed a woman's softness and captivating allure.

Seeing that he hadn't left, Jiang Shuwei gave him a strange look and continued drying her hair.

"Do you still want to do research with Professor Lu Youfu?" He Jingcheng changed the subject.

Thinking of the pitiful sight of her holding a bowl and quietly eating hot pot at Professor Lu's place last time, He Jingcheng unexpectedly felt a trace of pity. He figured that she was, after all, his wife; as long as she swallowed her pride and asked, he could still help her with this little favor.

Jiang Shuwei's eyes flicked in surprise. While tossing her long hair and blow-drying it, she said calmly, "I don't have that thought at the moment."

Hearing her offhand and dismissive tone, He Jingcheng assumed she was putting on airs of noble detachment again.

He truly disliked this personality of hers—someone who clearly suffered grievances and clearly wanted something, yet stubbornly insisted with her lips that she didn't want it and wasn't wronged. Who was she trying to act strong for?

"You don't want to, or you don't have the chance?" He Jingcheng sneered, striking a blow at her pride. "If you don't have the chance, just ask me for help. For the sake of the fact that we are husband and wife, I can pull some strings for you..."

"No need." Listening to his patronizing, charity-like tone, Jiang Shuwei felt an inexplicable tightness in her chest.

If He Jingcheng truly cared about her, he would never have uttered such ridiculous words.

He would have known what the real situation was like. It wasn't that she didn't have the chance; rather, she had always kept her mother's admonition from back then in mind—telling her never to stand out or court publicity prematurely in this field.

Yet his sudden, abrupt show of concern made her feel even more suffocated than no concern at all.

"Jiang Shuwei." The anger He Jingcheng had been suppressing finally flared up, and he strode over to the bathroom doorway in a few steps.

Jiang Shuwei had just finished drying her long hair. She switched off the hair dryer, stood up straight, and looked directly into the man's eyes.

"I am rarely in the mood to treat you well, and you're just going to throw it back in my face?" He Jingcheng let out a cold laugh. "Oh, right, you don't need my help anymore, do you? You've found a better patron and backing."

Jiang Shuwei furrowed her brows slightly, having no idea what he was talking about. She only lowered her voice and said, "Step aside, please. I'm going to find Tingting to go to sleep."

He Jingcheng refused to budge, his tall and imposing frame aggressively blocking the doorway.

He looked down from above at this fair, fresh-faced woman. After her bath, she exuded a natural, faint fragrance. Combined with her clear eyes and rosy lips, she looked like a camellia in full, dazzling bloom, carrying an alluring charm.

"When did you and Qin Weizhou get together?" He Jingcheng suppressed his anger, asking her as calmly as possible. "The few times you brought up divorce with me—was it just so you could be with him, right?"

Jiang Shuwei's mind went blank; with a bewildered expression, she stared fixedly at He Jingcheng.

"What nonsense are you talking about? I'm not even remotely close to Qin Weizhou. Don't wrong me with false accusations." Jiang Shuwei was telling the truth.

"Not close?" He Jingcheng smiled coldly. "Then do you dare let me see what you've got packed in your bag?"

Before Jiang Shuwei could react, He Jingcheng had already grabbed her handbag, opened it, and pulled out the ancient book. "What is this? Isn't this a token of your affection?"

"He Jingcheng, don't mess around! Give it back to me." Jiang Shuwei was terrified out of her wits. The book was extremely fragile; if not handled with the utmost care, the pages would easily fall apart. Yet right now, it was clutched haphazardly in He Jingcheng's large palm like a piece of scrap paper. All it would take was a careless flick of his hand, and the pages would scatter across the room like tattered, falling leaves.

"He Jingcheng, whatever you want to say, can't we just talk it out properly? Please give me the book back first. This isn't what you think it is. Whatever you want me to explain, I can explain it all." Thoroughly frightened into numbness, Jiang Shuwei reasoned with him in soft, conciliatory tones.

"Look at that submissive expression of yours. You care this much about something he gave you?" He Jingcheng sneered with mockery, looking down on her even more.

Jiang Shuwei took a deep breath and finally told him the truth: "He Jingcheng, please don't be like this. Young Master Qin asked me to translate this book to help treat his grandmother's leg ailment. He didn't give it to me as a gift. Please don't ruin it, I'm begging you."

Only then did He Jingcheng realize that the ancient book in his hands was indeed extremely fragile. At that moment, the friction against his fingers was already grinding some of the paper into fine dust.

"You think I'll believe that? You're not the only one who can translate this book. Why didn't he ask anyone else, and instead came only to you? Isn't it because you're pretty and threw yourself at him?" He Jingcheng's voice was filled with sarcasm and suspicion. As the "evidence" piled up, his disdain for Jiang Shuwei deepened.

Seeing how utterly unreasonable He Jingcheng was being, Jiang Shuwei realized she had truly reached her limit.

During these three years of marriage, they had originally lived parallel lives with zero intersection.

Ever since Su Meng stole her thesis and caused a massive uproar, he had only contacted her out of necessity on Su Meng's behalf, which led to their subsequent frequent encounters.

Yet now, her explanations were pale and powerless before him. While questioning her, had he ever once reflected on his own behavior?

"Fine. Tonight, I did have dinner with Qin Weizhou. Firstly, to thank him for the umbrella he lent me, and secondly, to thank him for saving my life from Zheng Dongsheng on the cruise ship, preventing me from becoming Zheng Dongsheng's plaything..." Jiang Shuwei bit her lower lip and looked calmly at He Jingcheng.

"Zheng Dongsheng?" Hearing that name, He Jingcheng's gaze gradually cooled. "I know he was at the cruise banquet that day. You just said Qin Weizhou saved you—what is that all about?"

Jiang Shuwei lowered her head and let out a desolate, bitter laugh. "Wasn't it you who invited Zheng Dongsheng onto the ship? Wasn't it your wish for him to bring me to a room and rape me? He Jingcheng, are you really going to deny something you did yourself?"

"What nonsense are you spouting?" He Jingcheng's heart gave a violent shudder. The next second, the arm he had been holding high—along with the book—dropped to his side. "Jiang Shuwei, you actually suspect me?"

Jiang Shuwei kept her eyes fixed on his arm. Seeing that he had finally put it down, she took a step toward him. "I am not spouting nonsense. Zheng Dongsheng told me himself. He said you didn't want me anymore and wanted to hand me over as a gift to him, since he had just returned to the country. He even said you were the one who invited him aboard. He Jingcheng, you doing something like this doesn't surprise me; after all, you loathe me and hate me to the core. It's just—perhaps to your disappointment—Zheng Dongsheng didn't get to sleep with me. Qin Weizhou just happened to pass by and saved my life. Otherwise, I would have been tortured to death by Zheng Dongsheng."

He Jingcheng's pupils trembled. As he watched Jiang Shuwei step closer and closer to lay bare his crimes, his arm wavered, and he took a step back.