The moment the door closed, the room fell back into silence.
Cold and desolate.
Lu Yan stood still, his hands hanging by his sides. He stared intently at Ning Anmiao until she left.
Until he was the only one left.
A hint of restraint finally showed on his deep and well - defined features.
She was really gone.
The whole room seemed empty, and there was no trace of her presence anymore.
The atmosphere turned cold.
Lu Yan lowered his eyes and looked at the wedding ring on his middle finger.
The light in the living room was so bright that the reflection from the ring was blinding. Lu Yan had to squint his eyes.
As if his eyes were dazzled.
He suddenly began to recall every moment he had spent with Ning Anmiao.
Was it... happy?
Maybe it was a special gift from God to him.
If that absurd and ridiculous body - swap hadn't happened, the two of them might have divorced smoothly three months ago.
He should have been grateful.
But humans are greedy. Once they have had something, they are reluctant to let it go.
They even want to seize more.
He wiped his lips. The taste of Miaomiao seemed to still linger there. His fingertips stayed there for a few seconds.
The passionate kiss just now was something he enjoyed, but it was too hasty, so hasty that he didn't have time to savor it.
This was the last kiss between him and Miaomiao.
...
Lu Yan never knew that nights without Miaomiao would be so hard to bear.
He lay on the big bed that used to be theirs. When he stretched out his arms and touched the cold other side, he retracted his hands.
It was a lonely night.
He remembered what Miaomiao had said -
"I'll go back to Jiangcheng with my mom next week. We'll get the divorce done before that."
She was going back to Jiangcheng.
Back to her own place.
He tugged at his lips, showing a self - deprecating and bitter smile in the darkness.
She never really belonged to him.
He clearly knew that this day would come, and he always hoped that she could be herself again, the real Ning Anmiao.
But when this moment actually arrived, he realized how painful it was.
It was like someone had yanked his heart out of his chest and kneaded and pulled it wantonly.
The pain was sharp and piercing.
He knew very well that once Miaomiao left this city, the chance of them meeting again would be almost zero.
The world was so big that once two people separated, they would disappear into the vast sea of people.
Goodbye forever.
He didn't want to say goodbye to Miaomiao forever.
The next day.
Based on the little things Ning Anmiao had said before, he found the designer friend she had met online.
"Excuse me, is this Miss Yin Yiyan?"
His voice was calm and composed, just like his demeanor during business negotiations. "Xinghe has a design cooperation recently. I wonder if Miss Yin is interested?"
...
The day they had agreed to get divorced was May 5th.
Ning Anmiao didn't forget. She got up early, washed up, changed into some comfortable clothes, and left the hotel. She even remembered to say hello to Bai Jiaying before leaving.
It was just a matter of going through the formalities. As long as both parties agreed, the divorce would be done quickly.
Originally, Ning Anmiao planned to take a taxi to the Civil Affairs Bureau. But as soon as she left the hotel, a car drove up and stopped in front of her.
Before Ning Anmiao could react, Lu Yan opened the car door, stepped out, and leaned back against the door.
That familiar calmness and restraint, and his usual commanding tone: "Get in the car."
Lu Yan was wearing a dark blue shirt and matching dress pants. The top two buttons of his collar were undone, making him look casual and unrestrained, less serious.
For a moment, Ning Anmiao felt that this didn't seem like a trip to get divorced. It was more like she was about to go on a date.
His gaze fell on Ning Anmiao.
Ning Anmiao stood in front of him, clenching her hands in her pockets. "Let's go. The Civil Affairs Bureau."
It was a free ride. She might as well take it.
In fact, she didn't want to admit that she still had the occasional flutter in her heart when facing Lu Yan.
After all, he was the man she had loved passionately.
Lu Yan raised his eyebrows slightly. Sensing her uneasiness and nervousness, he squinted at her. "Okay."
After saying that, he stepped aside and opened the car door for her.
His gesture was elegant and gentlemanly. Ning Anmiao's body stiffened for a few seconds, but she followed his lead and got into the passenger seat.
As she lowered her head, she caught a quick glimpse of his hand on the car roof, carefully protecting her head.
Miaomiao's ears couldn't help but turn red again.
She didn't know why, but she always felt that Lu Yan was different from before.
It seemed that he had really changed a lot in these three months.
But it was just a momentary thought. Then she composed herself and tried not to be deceived by this fleeting illusion.
A person's attitude couldn't change overnight.
She didn't want to take the risk anymore.
She didn't dare to take the risk anymore.
In the adult world, there was no such thing as eternal love or unshakable affection.
Some feelings were doomed to have no happy ending from the very beginning.
She thought the atmosphere in the car would be tense, but it wasn't as she had worried. Lu Yan was very relaxed throughout the journey, driving the car at a steady pace.
When they were stuck in traffic, he casually played some soft music.
The whole process was very harmonious, and it really felt like they were going on a date.
"Do you want to open the window for some fresh air?" Lu Yan asked.
Ning Anmiao shook her head. "No, thanks."
She tried to minimize her communication with Lu Yan and turned her head out of the window, not looking at him.
Seeing this, Lu Yan didn't initiate another conversation. He tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
"Okay."
...
When they arrived at the Civil Affairs Bureau, Ning Anmiao sat up straight, unbuckled her seat - belt, and prepared to get out of the car.
"Miaomiao, I'll ask you one more time."
Lu Yan suddenly spoke up and turned to look at her face. "Do we really have to get divorced?"
Ning Anmiao sat quietly in the car, closing her eyes for a moment.
She wasn't surprised.
She had guessed before that Lu Yan would definitely ask her this question.
The matter of divorce wasn't a big deal, and it would have almost no impact on Lu Yan.
However, just because it had no impact on Lu Yan didn't mean it had no impact on Xinghe Capital.
Now that Lu Yan was married but had no children yet, it was already enough to make those other relatives in the Lu family eye him covetously. If he got divorced now, those people might start causing trouble again.
It was said that Lu Yan's cousin had just had a baby last month. Maybe he would also try to get a share of Xinghe on the grounds of having Lu family blood.
In the world of the wealthy, everything was so materialistic.
So Ning Anmiao knew very well that the position of Mrs. Lu couldn't be left empty.
Once it was empty, Lu Yan would be faced with a complicated web of family relations, which would be troublesome and difficult to deal with.
And he didn't like trouble.
"I've made up my mind. We must get divorced."