She Lost Memory Before the Divorce-Chapter 222 - 0 Starting Over
Chapter 222: Chapter 0222: Starting Over
Chapter 222: Chapter 0222: Starting Over
Mu Lan was stunned; Huo Tingxiao had never been like this before.
“You…”
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“I know these words might sound like excuses to you.
But… no one has ever loved me since I was a child, and I don’t know how to love others.
The nicer people are to me, the less I know what to do.
So I subconsciously escape because I can’t respond in the same way.
I admit I am very selfish, afraid of bearing that guilt, so… I just pretend to be oblivious.”
Huo Tingxiao explained slowly, each sentence striking Mu Lan’s heart.
They had never spoken heart to heart like this before, and Huo Tingxiao seldom spoke about himself, let alone express such candid emotions.
Mu Lan was extremely shocked, taking a long time to regain her composure.
“You think I would blackmail you with this so-called life-saving grace to make you stay by my side?
How could I dare? If I could blackmail you, then… could Pei Zhao also?
After all, you have always remembered that time in Kun County.
It was after he appeared that you wanted to divorce me…”
Huo Tingxiao’s tone deepened, his eyes hawk-like as they locked on her. He truly bared his heart to her, not fearing embarrassment, revealing even his petty thoughts.
“So, you think I wanted to repay Mr. Pei by… Huo Tingxiao, my desire to divorce you has nothing to do with Mr. Pei.
It’s just because I feel I’ve had enough of you, this jerk, and I don’t want to continue this suffocating life.
If it goes on like this, I will turn into a madwoman. Do you think I don’t know that I have already become someone else?
The sadness lies in the fact that even though I know this, I can’t change it.
I finally want to move past, I want to leave you, and yet you…”
Watching the flames of anger in Mu Lan’s eyes, Huo Tingxiao had a complex look, feeling both sadness for her and an involuntary joy; this liveliness was what made her more real.
“Even if you don’t leave me, you can still go back to being the real you.
Mu Lan, I want to become the person you like.”
Mu Lan turned her gaze away, unwilling to look at him, feeling that she and Huo Tingxiao were simply not on the same wavelength.
“And then what? To repeat history and recreate another tragedy?
Huo Tingxiao, true love should allow both people to improve, to feel more comfortable, not merely to cater to each other and lose oneself.
This is a truth that took me seven years to understand.”
Huo Tingxiao abruptly stood up, leaning against the side of the couch. Mu Lan propped herself up, her hair slightly messy yet possessing a different kind of beauty, her brows slightly furrowed.
Frustration grew within him, and he unexpectedly pulled out a cigarette from his pocket.
Mu Lan stared at him. She had never known that Huo Tingxiao smoked and asked subconsciously.
“When did you start smoking?”
The cigarette in his hand flickered on and off, and he would turn his body away when exhaling the smoke.
The weak light flickered across Huo Tingxiao’s handsome face, his expression etched with unresolved melancholy.
“I’ve always smoked. I just seldom did after we got married.”
Mu Lan watched him, unsure if his words meant what she thought.
She wanted to say smoking was bad for his health, but feeling it might sound ambiguous, she swallowed her words.
After finishing the cigarette, Huo Tingxiao stubbed out the butt in the ashtray and spoke again.
“I don’t know what good love is. I’ve never loved anyone; you are the first.
I just want to see you happy, see you smile, see your lively expressions, not… like now.”
When Mu Lan heard him say she was his first love, her heart trembled slightly.
She thought she had already turned into a heart of stone, but… apparently, she had not.
“You’re right, people aren’t machines, they have emotions, and can’t just turn them off and on at will.
I won’t force you, and there’s no need for you to take this matter too seriously.
I’m different from Pei Zhao, I won’t ask you to repay me anything. If anything should be repaid, it ought to be by me.
Not only what I owe you, but also what I owe myself.
It was I who wasted seven years. Flowers may bloom again, but one cannot relive their youth. I don’t want to dwell on the past.
But from now on, every day in the future will not be like before,”
Huo Tingxiao said each word very seriously.
“From now on, let’s get to know each other again. Hello, I am Huo Tingxiao.”
As he spoke, he extended his long fingers toward Mu Lan.
Mu Lan knew what her response would mean, and also that once she reached out her hand, it would take their relationship in a different direction.
Not like what she had said verbally before, just giving him a chance because of a promise.
It would be real, genuinely giving him another chance from the heart.
Her heart uncontrollably racing, Mu Lan felt her whole body heating up, especially around her eyes. She didn’t know what was happening to her.
Huo Tingxiao, seeing her hesitate, wasn’t surprised at all. His fingertips trembled slightly, as if waiting for a verdict.
Lowering his gaze, he even dared not look directly at Mu Lan.
The hope in his eyes gradually faded, and a self-mocking smile appeared on his face, it seemed he really didn’t deserve another chance from Mu Lan.
His hand slowly curled up, about to drop…
Suddenly, it was grasped by a cool, small hand.
“Hello, I am Mu Lan.”
Huo Tingxiao’s eyes suddenly rekindled as he looked up into Mu Lan’s clear eyes.
“Don’t misunderstand, I’m just agreeing that we can start as friends.”
Starting as friends was enough to make Huo Tingxiao happy.
With a slight force, he pulled her into his embrace, feeling as if he had regained something he had lost.
Finally, she was not repulsing him anymore.
Mu Lan, who had not anticipated his audacity, poked him in the ribs, causing Huo Tingxiao to instinctively dodge and let go of her.
“Don’t overdo it, we’re just friends, and friends don’t do these kinds of things.”
Seeing her speak so righteously, Huo Tingxiao looked innocent.
“In Paris, friends greet each other not just with hugs but also kisses.”
Mu Lan didn’t expect him to still dare to quibble shamelessly.
“I am Chinese, not Parisian. If you want to kiss, go find a Parisian girl to be friends with.”
Huo Tingxiao, upon hearing this, almost wished he could swear an oath to prove his loyalty.
“I don’t want any other girls, I only want you.
Whatever you say goes. I just got a bit carried away before… From now on, as long as you don’t want to, I absolutely won’t overstep.”
As he spoke, he indeed took a step back, widening the distance between them.
Mu Lan was still not used to Huo Tingxiao being so obedient.
Suddenly thinking of something, Mu Lan pursed her lips and spoke:
“Really, whatever I say goes?”
Huo Tingxiao nodded.
“Of course, a man’s word is his bond. Since I promised you, I will definitely do it.”
Mu Lan thought it over and decided to speak her mind.
“Well then, there’s something I want you to listen to me on…”
