In my past life, I was mere cannon fodder, a character meant only to highlight Hugh Pei's deep love for another woman. In the end, my family was destroyed, and I met a desolate end.
After being reborn, I decided slacking off was the best way to live. I would ignore everything and just wait for Hugh Pei to suggest a divorce.
But things took a strange turn. The man who, in my past life, wouldn't come home for months on end, was now showing up every few days. He was even worried I'd cheat on him.
"Do you believe that in the near future, you'll be desperate for me to disappear?" I asked.
"In your dreams," he replied. "We will torment each other to death."
I sighed. As a transmigrator, I was confident: Hugh Pei was about to meet his one true love.
Finally, he met her. I thought freedom was just a step away.
But then he asked me coolly, "Who said I wanted a divorce?"
Not only would he not divorce me, but he started paying more and more attention to me, even abandoning his supposed true love!
（The following text）
The streets of A-City were bustling with traffic.
I had been sitting in a coffee shop called "Encounter" for two hours. My seat was in a corner, directly facing the counter where a young girl in a sky-blue apron was busy brewing various drinks.
She was about five-foot-three, probably didn't weigh more than 90 pounds, and had a fair, slender build. She smiled a lot. Her thick, raven hair was tied in a high ponytail, and her crescent-moon eyes were incredibly infectious when she smiled.
"Ma'am, would you like a refill?" she asked, walking over with a radiant smile.
I had been so lost in thought, staring at this young girl. It was a good thing I was also a woman, or I might have been mistaken for a pervert.
"Yes, another black coffee, please," I said, offering a polite smile, my voice faint.
Soon, the girl brought me another cup of bitter black coffee. She didn't leave right away, hesitating for a moment before meddling. "Ma'am, you've already had two cups of black coffee. I know it's refreshing, but too much is bad for you. Maybe... you could come back for more another time?"
She was kind and outgoing, and her voice was as crisp and pleasant as a wind chime.
I glanced at the coffee on the table, then picked up my bag and stood. "Alright, I'll take the check."
The girl was delighted that I'd taken her advice. She hurried to ring me up. "Ma'am, your total today is 87 yuan. Will you be paying with cash or mobile pay?"
I paid without a word and quickly left the shop.
"Madam," Leo Li said, nodding respectfully as I came out. He opened the car door for me.
"Let's go home," I said with a faint smile.
The car pulled away smoothly. I closed my eyes in the back seat, trying to rest, but the image of the young girl from the coffee shop—that bright, youthful face—kept appearing in my mind.
Was that her? The girl for whom, a year from now, Hugh Pei would defy his family and pay a huge price to divorce me.
I never thought that the first thing I would do after being reborn would be to find her current workplace and watch her like a stalker.
I was just too curious. What kind of girl had stolen the man I'd loved for ten years?
In my past life, I had never even met her. All I managed to find was a name and a few photos. Hugh Pei protected her like a rare treasure. I was utterly defeated, yet my rival never even showed her face.
Young, beautiful, pure, kind, cheerful... all these wonderful adjectives suited that girl perfectly.
Her only weakness was her complete lack of family background, a vast gap between her and Hugh Pei.
Leo Li suddenly spoke. "Madam, today is your and Mr. Pei's wedding anniversary."
I slowly opened my eyes, feeling dazed for a moment.
Come to think of it, this was the fifth year of my marriage to Hugh Pei. Every year on our anniversary, I would spend the entire day busy, preparing a candlelight dinner and a gift.
This year, I was 27, and he was 29.
"I know," I said, rubbing my temples, which were starting to ache. "You don't need to remind me."
Leo Li probably noticed I was different from previous years, which is why he brought it up.
But why did I always have to be the one to put in the effort? Why did I have to love that man? I had thought about this question before I died in my past life. For Hugh Pei, my family was destroyed, and all I got was a miserable end.
Lost in thought, the car had already stopped in front of the home Hugh Pei and I shared. It was a wedding gift from our parents, a luxurious manor villa on prime real estate, covering over a thousand square meters.
To my surprise, Hugh Pei's car was also parked at the entrance. He was home.
My feelings were complicated. Having died once, what kind of expression was appropriate when facing the main culprit after being reborn?
I thought I would hate Hugh Pei. For a woman, he had forced his wife of five years to a dead end. He had even been ruthless to his in-laws, who had once treated him so well. My family was completely wiped out by his hand.
But seeing him again, I found that my hatred wasn't as strong as I'd expected. It was more a sense of release.
In my last life, Hugh Pei had given me a chance. He had proposed an amicable divorce, offering me a portion of Pei Corporation's shares as compensation—enough for me to live lavishly for the rest of my life. But I refused. I hadn't earned a shred of his love in ten years, yet another woman had him utterly bewitched in just one, making him an enemy to the world.
So I tried every method to win him back, step by step leading us to a complete breakdown, a confrontation, a fight to the death.
Now, none of that had happened yet. Instead of hating him, I wanted to change that self-inflicted tragic ending.
"What are you standing there for?" Hugh Pei was sitting in the living room, his long legs crossed casually. The cigarette between his fingers had burned down, and he expertly stubbed it out in the ashtray before glancing up at me, his gaze as indifferent as ever.
On our wedding day, Hugh Pei had bluntly told me that our relationship was merely a business partnership, long-term roommates. He had no feelings for me.
"It's nothing. I just didn't expect you to be home," I said, bending down to change into my slippers. They were Hermès, in Elephant Gray—a simple design, a somber color. Besides being comfortable, there was nothing particularly attractive about them.
I thought of the girl in the blue apron at the coffee shop. She had a small, red flower smiley face pinned to her apron. No one else had one, just her.
In contrast, all my clothes were expensive and monotonous. Unchangingly simple, unchangingly dull.
I suddenly despised these slippers. I tossed them aside and walked barefoot into the living room.
Hugh Pei frowned slightly when he saw me walking barefoot, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. "No shoes?"
"Mm. If I don't want to wear them, I won't," I replied flatly, sitting down opposite him.
"How strange. What set you off?" Hugh Pei actually let out a small laugh, his tone unusually light as he asked.
I was set off by your future one true love, I thought.
I looked down at my own pale feet. They were so thin they looked a bit bony.
Lila Wei was different. Although she was slim, her skin was firm and supple, not like my skeletal frame.
Five years of a lonely marriage had caused numerous problems with my health. I had no interest in food, so I grew thinner and thinner, more and more like a bag of bones.
"Hugh Pei."
"Hm?" He was looking at his phone and didn't even raise his head.
He was wearing a black shirt and tailored trousers of excellent quality. His slender physique and perfect proportions gave him a strikingly handsome look. Combined with his smooth facial lines and refined, deep-set features, he was truly the dream of countless young women.
I tore my gaze away from my feet and looked at the man across from me. My voice was a bit hoarse. "Let's get a divorce."
The moment the words left my mouth, I heard Hugh Pei's scoff.
He tossed his phone onto the sofa and fixed me with a familiar, chilling gaze. "Zoe Xu, what kind of game are you playing now?"