Loveless Marriage

Hui Yin and Lu Shen spent half an hour staring at the rows of cars inside his garage. Both of them were victims of car accidents. It would be strange if they didn't have any apprehensions.

In the end, Lu Shen picked a small Kia Forte that was touted as one of the safest cars in the world. He made Hui Yin sit on the passenger seat and checked her seatbelt.

"Sir, where are we going?" she asked.

Right after she told him about the connection of the Wen family to her death, Lu Shen told her to change her clothes and that they were going somewhere. Hui Yin had no idea why he wanted a maid to go with him.

Lu Shen put the basket of sweets that the kitchen prepared on the backseat. Hui Yin darted a glance at them longingly. She always had a sweet tooth.

They drove on a more deserted highway and soon entered the gates of a cemetery. After parking the car and grabbing the basket, Hui Yin followed Lu Shen as he meandered along the sparse grave stones dotting the immaculate lawn. Carefully planted trees and bushes provided shade and greenery that made everything seem peaceful.

"It's a private family cemetery," he said after a while.

Hui Yin nodded but didn't continue the conversation. She was starting to have an idea of who he wanted to visit.

As she expected, they soon came in front of a grave stone with an inscription of her name. Hui Yin felt weird standing there as Lu Shen knelt and brushed his hand to remove the withered flower petals. It was easy to see that this grave had been properly cared for. A bouquet of flowers that had not wilted yet joined the other stacked bouquets on the side.

Lu Shen lit candles and incense while Hui Yin, for the lack of anything better to do, helped him clean the headstone. Lu Shen then put the basket of sweets among the flowers as he burned joss paper and prayer money.

Hui Yin rubbed her nose while she watched him. Instead of offering that basket of sweets to a dead person, why not give it to her instead? At least it would be digested by her stomach. Hui Yin felt regretful that a basket of delicious desserts made by a head chef was wasted just like that.

"When my wife and I were still engaged," Lu Shen said quietly, "The culprit responsible for my car accident trespassed into my villa. He left a business card in my study to taunt me that he could come in any time he wanted."

Hui Yin stopped fidgeting and listened to him.

"I was glad that my fiancée wasn't there at that time, but I thought about the future after we got married. Would he still be able to trespass then? What if he used her life as a bargaining chip just to get back at me? I didn't like the idea. I have been trailing his footsteps for nearly two years after I suspected that my car accident was done deliberately. And I still haven't uncovered his identity."

Lu Shen leaned forward and used his thumb to wipe a smudge of dirt on the grave stone.

"It frustrated me, to be in the beck and call of a person to whom I nearly lost my life. And right after the night we got married, I received another business card. Behind it was a message, telling me that if I don't care for my life, he'll threaten the people that I love instead."

Like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, ripples of disbelief spread outwards in Hui Yin's heart.

"That scared me more than I would care to admit. I could protect myself, but if he threatens her safety...I didn't want to commit a mistake and underestimate him." Lu Shen's voice became hoarse. "But how could you announce to the world that you didn't love the person you married? Maybe if it was something arranged by our parents, it would be believable. But this marriage...it was something I promised and had fought for despite my parents' protests."

Lu Shen let out a low chuckle, but it was mirthless.

"To be honest, I intended to divorce her right after we got married. When I'm with her, I lose too much control. It's my greatest taboo. I built the Lu Corporation and didn't accept any of my parents' help because I wanted to be independent, away from their control. I also didn't believe in the sanctity of marriage. My father had a mistress outside the family, and my mother knows this. She should stay away from that kind of man and divorce him, but she didn't because she didn't love him either. She was there for his wealth."

Hui Yin lowered her eyes. She had known this from the moment she first saw his parents. It wasn't love that kept them together, but greed.

"I fell in love with her when she helped me despite not knowing my identity. But after we went back to Beijing and I recovered my memories, her attitude towards me changed. She became too timid, too fearful of me. She begged me to stay with her as if she was afraid I would suddenly leave. I wondered...did her attitude towards me changed because of my position?"

Hui Yin nearly choked when she heard this. It was true that she was too clingy in the time that they were still engaged, but it was because she was afraid he would realize that she wasn't enough for him. A man with Lu Shen's status that could overturn the skies if he wanted to, how could she not be afraid that he would leave her?

But Hui Yin didn't think he would interpret it as her greed towards his wealth!

"I didn't want to have a loveless marriage like my parents. Knowing that I loved her and she didn't love me...maybe it would be even more painful than the one my parents had. In the end, I still couldn't help myself. I married her, despite my doubts. And I didn't divorce her, although I knew that the longer she stayed with me, the more her life would be in danger."