TDLWTAHATD CHAPTER 34

Chapter 34 – Already Bowed to the Dust

Lin Yan moved quickly and soon put Nan Xiao in touch with a lawyer.

That night, back home, Nan Xiao typed out a written guarantee.

In it, she declared she willingly gave up her marriage with Xie Chengyu and was satisfied with every clause of their divorce agreement.

She promised she would never harass him, nor attempt to revoke the divorce. If she broke that promise, she would pay him a ruinous penalty.

The next morning, Nan Xiao went to the lawyer’s office, had it notarized, and made it legally binding.

Clutching the guarantee tightly, she went to Xu Ruoxin’s lounge and knocked firmly.

When a voice inside called “come in,” she strode in, laid the copy of the guarantee down before Xu Ruoxin, and coldly declared:

“Xu Ruoxin, listen carefully. I have never intended to salvage my marriage with Xie Chengyu.

“He hasn’t come home once in three years of marriage. Even if I tried, what would it change? I don’t know if you’re delusional or paranoid, but you’ve never understood this.

“Since you can’t figure it out, I’ll solve it for you.

“I’ve written a guarantee, notarized by a lawyer. It states I will divorce willingly, and will never entangle myself with him again. So stop harassing me.

“Every time you’ve warned me not to approach him, it’s been laughable. When have I ever done that?

“This document has full legal effect. If you doubt me, have a law firm verify it.

“As for the slander you spread online that caused me to be mobbed, I’ll let it go. Consider it my good deed.

“But now that you’ve seen this guarantee, if you come after me again, Xu Ruoxin—I won’t be so easy to bully.”

Her voice was sharp and unwavering. The lounge fell into silence. Xu Ruoxin’s face darkened.

Then, with a sudden scrape of chair legs, Xie Chengyu rose from the sofa.

From where he’d been sitting, he was hidden from Nan Xiao’s sight when she entered.

His expression was grim as he strode toward her. She was surprised—but only for a moment. She quickly lowered her gaze.

So he’d been here all along, and had heard everything she said to Xu Ruoxin?

That was fine. Now he would know she truly wanted the divorce. He’d never be able to use that recording against her again.

Her heart ached, but a weight lifted. She turned to leave.

But Xie Chengyu seized her arm, fury in his eyes. “What do you mean by this?”

“What do you mean, what?”

She raised her eyes. They were clear and calm.

He snatched up the guarantee, scanning it quickly. His temple pulsed.

“Why would you write this?”

The paper trembled in his hand, anger flashing in his gaze.

Was he… angry?

Nan Xiao couldn’t fathom it.

She lowered her eyes and explained evenly: “You know what’s happened lately. Xu Ruoxin has repeatedly accused me of clinging to you, harassed me, and warned me off.

“Just days ago, she even questioned my professionalism, saying I rewrote scripts for your sake.

“Then she orchestrated that slanderous article, which led to my cyberbullying. I couldn’t take it anymore—so I wrote this guarantee.”

At her words, the always composed Xu Ruoxin trembled faintly. Xie Chengyu glanced at her; she quickly looked down.

He turned back to Nan Xiao. Her expression was composed, but sorrow swirled in her eyes, tugging at something deep within.

“President Xie, Miss Xu,” Nan Xiao’s voice softened. “Keep this copy. It names the penalty. If I breach it, you can sue me. You have nothing to fear.”

Her words, and this guarantee, had dragged her down into the dust. And she knew it.

But she had no choice. She didn’t want him to believe she was clinging. Even if she could never be with him, she wanted to leave him with a good impression.

She couldn’t afford to offend Xu Ruoxin either. In truth, her family background was far stronger—but she held no power within her own home. Xu Ruoxin, on the other hand, had Xie Chengyu behind her.

So she accepted the truth. Her status was simply beneath Xu Ruoxin’s.

Even if she was wronged, she had no strength to fight back.

Her only option was this degrading self-defense—to prove her innocence.

She thought of Lin Yan and Xiao Zekai. If they knew what she’d done, they’d be furious. But she had no other way.

“That’s all I had to say. I’ll go.”

She turned and left. Her departing figure carried a loneliness that made Xie Chengyu’s chest tighten. He didn’t know why.

He didn’t stop her. When the door closed, he turned to Xu Ruoxin for the first time with coldness in his gaze. “You interfered with Nan Xiao?”

Xu Ruoxin’s lips blanched. She dared not meet his eyes. She forced herself not to cower.

“Yes, I did. But I meant no harm. I only worried the divorce might go wrong.”

She tried to sound dignified, not too forceful, not too weak.

But then came the words she feared:

“That article—did you have it written?”

Her heart lurched.

He fixed her with a hard stare. “Ruoxin, don’t lie. I’ll know if you do.”

Her fists clenched, her body shook.

How could he always tell when she lied? Was it his shrewdness from years in business—or did he already have ways of uncovering the truth?