Guo Min had already cleaned up.
By the time Zihan entered the room, the faint scent of soap and clean linen lingered in the air. She was dressed in a simple knitted sweater and soft joggers, socks pulled up to her calves, her hair gathered loosely in a clip. There was something almost painfully pure about the way she looked... quiet, soft, untouched by the chaos of the day.
But the stillness around her wasn't peaceful.
She lay on the bed, staring at nothing in particular, her expression blank.
Zihan stepped in and shut the door behind him. For a moment, he simply watched her, unsure where to begin. Then he walked over and sat on the edge of the bed.
No reaction.
It was as though he hadn't entered at all.
As though he didn't exist.
He opened his mouth to speak.
Before a single word could leave him, Guo Min sat up. Calm. Detached. She slipped her feet into her home slippers and stood.
Not a glance in his direction.
She walked past him and toward the door.
Zihan turned slightly. "You're going downstairs?"
Still no answer.
She opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, leaving him sitting there with words that had nowhere to go.
A quiet exhale left him as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees for a moment before standing and walking into the bathroom.
Downstairs, Guo Min moved with quiet composure.
She greeted Zixuan and Grandpa Zhu when she entered the dining room, her voice calm but distant. They both returned the greeting with small nods. Neither of them seemed to know what to say. Even if Zihan carried most of the blame, the Zhu family was not innocent in the matter. The Zhu Corporation… the Zhu syndicate… none of it rested on one man alone.
Guo Min didn't try to hide behind a polite smile.
She simply sat down and ate.
Her movements were controlled, neat, and efficient. But the air around her felt closed off, like a clear, silent warning not to approach. Everyone at the table felt it.
A few minutes later, Zihan walked in and took the seat beside her.
She didn't acknowledge him.
Not a glance.
Not a word.
Her meal was quick, almost rushed. When she finished, a maid stepped forward to clear the table. Guo Min stood and walked toward the living room, needing distance from the dining table… from all of them.
Li Yan followed almost immediately.
"Guo Min, listen..." she began gently.
"Mom, please. Not now." Guo Min didn't turn around.
Li Yan hesitated but tried again. "I know you're upset, but..."
The doorbell rang.
The interruption cut through the tension. A maid opened the door, and a young woman stepped inside, dressed casually.
"Xiao Mei?" Guo Min's tone softened slightly as she turned. "Isn't it too late to be roaming around the city alone?."
"Yes, ma" Xiao Mei replied, a little breathless. "You asked for these files to be brought to the Zhu villa, but your security directed me here instead." She rummaged through her bag and pulled out several black hardcover folders along with a tablet. "These need urgent finalization before tomorrow morning. I expected you at the office lately, but you didn't come."
Guo Min sighed quietly and walked over to the sofa. She took a pen, flipped through the documents, and signed where necessary. Xiao Mei waited, but when Guo Min handed the files back, she didn't move.
"Something else?" Guo Min asked without looking up.
"You have three meetings tomorrow," Xiao Mei continued carefully, scrolling through her tablet. "One with the shareholders in the morning. The land you wanted to sell has a confirmed buyer, he wants to meet tomorrow. And the new project with Zhu Corporation will be finalized in a meeting with the CEO."
The words had barely finished leaving her mouth when Guo Min spoke. "Cancel them."
Xiao Mei blinked. "…Okay, ma... wait. Cancel…?" She looked up, confused. "But we've been working toward these for months. Why suddenly..."
"Cancel them or move them forward. Do whatever you want," Guo Min said flatly. "Just know you won't see my shadow in the office all of next week."
Xiao Mei stood frozen, unsure how to respond.
Guo Min's eyes lifted slowly. "The shareholders' meeting can be held without me."
Still, Xiao Mei didn't move.
"Xiao Mei," Guo Min said, voice quiet but firm. "Get out."
That was enough. The secretary gathered her things quickly and left without another word.
Guo Min stood. She didn't look at anyone in the room... not Li Yan, not the servants, not even the direction Zihan had gone.
She simply turned and walked upstairs.
By the time Zihan walked into the room, she was already asleep, curled slightly into herself, as if trying to make herself smaller beneath the weight pressing down on her.
The night passed in a fragile, deceptive calm but morning shattered it.
Zhu Zihan's world came crashing down before sunrise. For the first time in years, his carefully controlled expression broke, panic surfacing before he could bury it. "Guo Min, Guo Min. This isn't funny."
He hurried down the stairs after her, his voice sharp with urgency.
At the foot of the staircase, Guo Min carefully walked, rolling a suitcase behind her. Ruoxi, was already there. She stepped forward, took the suitcase handle from Guo Min, and pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Let's go," Guo Min said quietly when they parted.
They had barely taken a few steps when Zihan caught up, breath uneven, hair ruffled, still in his pajamas... nothing like the composed man the world feared.
"Guo Min, please," he said, reaching for her. "Hear me out. We can talk calmly." He swallowed. "You're my wife. You shouldn't leave me. You can't leave me."
But his words landed against a wall.
She pulled her arm free and kept walking.
He caught her again, firmer this time. "Guo Min. Get back inside." His voice shifted... calm, commanding. The tone he used in boardrooms. The tone that made others fall in line.
But that didn't work on her. Guo Min laughed. "Not everything and not everyone dances in your palm," she said. "Even the Zhu CEO doesn't control everything."
She turned then, finally meeting his eyes.
His family stood in the background, Li Yan, Zixuan, Grandpa Zhu... watching in helpless silence. For once, there was nothing they could do.
"I won't stay with you out of love," Guo Min continued, voice steady but cold, "and watch my family and friends fall into ruin just because I'm married to you."
She stepped back.
"I'll send the divorce papers soon."
The words landed like a verdict.
Zihan didn't move.
His hand remained half-raised, as if he could still stop her if he tried. But his feet felt rooted to the floor. For the first time in a very long time, Zhu Zihan didn't know what to do.
Ruoxi opened the car door.
Guo Min got in without looking back.
Li Yan hurried after them, calling softly, trying to reason with her, but it changed nothing. The decision had already been made. The car pulled away.
And just like that...
The house felt emptier than it ever had before.
Zihan stood in the doorway long after the car disappeared, the silence around him heavy and absolute.
On the way to the Wang mansion.
Guo Min leaned back slightly, her gaze unfocused as the car moved. Beside her, Ruoxi adjusted her coat and exhaled. "Sorry I arrived so late, Min. I took the earliest flight to Japan after Guo Ji's wedding banquet." She paused, then tilted her head with a teasing smile. "So… did you miss me?"
Guo Min turned to her. "…Yes. It was the first time you weren't beside me when I was in a dire situation." A faint smile touched her lips, rare and honest.
Ruoxi blinked, surprised, then laughed softly. "That's unexpected. I didn't think you'd admit that so easily." She nudged her shoulder lightly.
"Well, now that you've finally decided to take a break for yourself, we can do more sisterly things. Like before."
Guo Min let out a quiet breath. "Before?… feels like another lifetime."
The car slowed at a traffic light. Ruoxi studied her carefully. "You're still thinking about it, aren't you?".
Guo Min didn't answer immediately.
Her fingers tightened slightly over her phone.
"…Lixi hasn't woken up."
The air in the car shifted. Ruoxi's smile faded, replaced with something gentler. "She will."
Guo Min's eyes darkened just slightly. "She has to." The car rolled forward again, heading toward the Wang mansion.