Ava ran into Benjamin in the parking lot. Benjamin seemed a little surprised too. He thought for a moment, then walked over to her, his eyes deep: “You’re really leaving Ronin?”
Ava gave a soft “Hmm”: “Yes, getting ready to leave.” She tossed the box in her hand into the trunk, closed the lid, then turned to face Benjamin and said calmly: “Thank you for what happened that night.”
Benjamin looked at her face—That indifferent expression, that hidden look, was the Ava he knew. That night, her beauty and fragility had felt like a dream. Benjamin’s eyes darkened. He nodded politely: “It was nothing.” Though his tone was cold, after Ava’s car slowly drove away, he stood there watching for a long time, deep in thought.
At 8 p.m., Ava returned to Imperial Vista. As soon as she got out of the car, a gust of osmanthus-scented wind blew, refreshing and pleasant. A servant came over, respectfully asking: “Madam, will you eat alone tonight, or wait for sir to come back? The kitchen has already prepared the dishes.”
Ava thought for a moment, then said calmly: “From today on, no need to prepare meals for me anymore.”
The servant was shocked and was about to ask why. But Ava had already walked through the entrance, into the hall, and slowly went upstairs.
On the second floor, the lights were bright. Ava slowed her steps. She stared quietly at the gorgeous corridor, walking forward step by step. With each step, she remembered the past with Ethan, the path they’d taken together—so difficult, so unforgettable, so painful…
[Ethan, if you want power, I’ll help you.]
[Ethan, it won’t always be this hard for us, right?]
[Ethan, it hurts so much… my abdomen hurts so much.]
[I’m sorry, Margret! After the examination, your chance of getting pregnant is very slim. Maybe consider adoption?]
Those short ten meters felt like she’d walked through her entire life, like she’d exhausted all her feelings for Ethan. A night wind blew, and Ava’s face felt cold. She pushed open the bedroom door, gently turned on the wall lamp, and soft light illuminated everything around. For four years, her life, her existence, seemed to revolve entirely around Ethan. She’d stood by his side as he climbed to the peak of power, watching him thrive—yet she, Ava, had become less and less like herself.
Fortunately, she was finally completely free.
Ava walked into the walk-in closet, pulled out several large suitcases, and started packing. She sorted out all her usual clothes, and took all her expensive jewelry with her too. After packing, Ava straightened up, and unexpectedly saw the oil painting hanging on the wall.
It was her work— a painting of Ethan when he was young. A bright, sunny teenager.
Love was gone, so this painting didn’t need to exist either. Ava found a lipstick from her handbag, and vigorously scratched it across the painting. Red streaks appeared, shocking to the eye. Soon, the painting was unrecognizable, and Ethan’s face in it became blurred. The love she’d poured into it back then was matched by the hatred she felt now. Not just the oil painting—their wedding photos were also slashed to pieces with a knife. Glass shattered, love broken…
The photos of them smiling sweetly in the past could never be put back together. The carving knife in Ava’s hand fell to the floor. Her arms trembled uncontrollably. Suddenly, she raised her hand to cover her eyes. Her eyes ached with a sour, swollen pain—like the loss of all her youth, like the abdomen ache that night…
Ava left, without a trace of regret. The bedroom, now without its mistress, was empty. Only a diamond ring on the bedside table glowed with a cold, hard light…
In the parking lot on the first floor, the servants couldn’t stop Ava. They watched helplessly as she left. When the servants came to their senses, they immediately called Ethan.
Mercy Springs Hospital, VIP Inpatient Department. At the end of the corridor, the French window stood wide open, with the night wind blowing in. Ethan stood there, tall and upright. He was answering the call from Imperial Vista, and the servant’s panicked voice came through the phone: “Sir, Madam has left.”
Ethan looked a little impatient: “Did she say where she was going?” He didn’t take it seriously. He thought Ava was just in a bad mood and had gone out for a walk. Hadn’t she gone out drinking a few days ago? He blamed the servant for making a fuss.
The servant fell silent for a moment, then spoke very softly: “Madam refused to say. She took several large suitcases. We went upstairs to check—all her usual jewelry and clothes are gone. The bedroom is a mess, sir. Please come back and take a look!”
Ethan’s heart tightened. He held the phone, unable to recover for a long time. After a while, he hung up and hurried to the elevator. The light above the corridor shone on his face, casting a perfect yet stern side profile, with a flicker of movement in his lowered eyelashes.
Ethan rushed back to Imperial Vista, and night had fallen. He climbed the stairs to the second floor and pushed open the bedroom he shared with Ava. The door opened gently, and what met his eyes was a scene of devastation. The wedding photo that used to hang above the bed had been roughly smashed, with shards of glass scattered all over the floor. The accidental smile they shared during the photo shoot had been slashed to pieces with a carving knife, and no trace of the past remained.
Going further into the walk-in closet, Ava’s wardrobe doors stood wide open, as if ransacked. All her clothes and jewelry were gone. An oil painting hung on the wall—the one Ava loved most. On their wedding day, she’d begged him for a long time before he agreed to be her model. It was one of the rare sweet moments in their married life.
Ethan didn’t understand. Why, now that they had everything, now that they stood at the top of power, had Ava grown distant, had she started making trouble with him? How many women dreamed of being Margret? Was she really giving it all up? He didn’t believe it!
Standing among the shards, Ethan took out his phone and called Ava. He thought she was just playing hide-and-seek, just seeking his attention. Unexpectedly, her phone rang, and she answered quickly. Ethan questioned his wife over the phone, saying that the commotion she’d made would lead to all kinds of bad speculation about them, which would affect Ronin Group’s stock price. Ethan ordered Ava to come back. He said: “There’s a limit to being willful! Ava, you have to consider the bigger picture.”
The night was quiet. Ava’s calm voice came through the phone: “There is no bigger picture anymore! Ethan, I’ve had someone draft the divorce petition. You’ll receive the court summons soon.”
Ethan’s Adam’s apple bobbed. It took him a long time to squeeze out a sentence: “What do you mean?”
After a pause, Ava said coldly: “Exactly what you think! Ethan, we’re done.”
Ava hung up. Ethan called again, but it didn’t go through. A cold, mechanical voice came from the receiver—[Sorry, the number you dialed is turned off…]
Ethan stood there for a long time. At the door, a servant said cautiously: “Miss Garcia called. She wants to talk to you, sir.”
Veins popped on Ethan’s forehead. He snapped coldly: “Tell her to get lost!”
Ava was gone. Ava didn’t want him anymore. His Ava didn’t want him. She’d once said she’d stay with him forever, that she’d always stand by his side, never leaving. Ethan struggled to catch his breath, suppressing his anger. Just then, his gaze flickered. He spotted a piece of paper under the bed, slightly yellowed, as if it had been there for years.
Ethan frowned: What’s that! He went over and picked it up. The next second, he froze—It was a gynecological hospital diagnosis report.
The Patient’s name: Ava.
