CHAPTER 81: CHAPTER 81: MANIPULATING HEARTS

Eugene Vaughn rose from the couch, bent over, rested his elbows on his knees, and covered his face with his hands, taking a deep breath as a heavy, cold aura engulfed him. His voice was hoarse and dejected, soft and despondent, "Victoria Sinclair, should we immigrate?"

Victoria was taken aback, frozen.

After a long while, Victoria finally recovered from her shock, "Why would we immigrate? Are you facing some issue? Tell me, maybe I can help you."

"There’s nothing wrong, just want to leave here, you can choose whichever country you want." Eugene bent over, talking to her while covering his face.

Victoria couldn’t see his expression, but his tone didn’t sound like he was joking.

Victoria replied sincerely, "I won’t immigrate, I really love my country. My country has nurtured me for more than ten years, and now is the time for me to give back. I also love my family, I have elderly parents to support, a brother, a best friend, everything for me is at home. Asking me to give all this up, to abandon my career and go abroad with you, is impossible."

Eugene remained silent.

"Your family and career are also here, why do you want to immigrate? Is something wrong?"

Eugene felt like he was falling into an ice cellar, cold and frightening.

Sitting beside him, Victoria felt cold inside even in the heat of summer.

"Why won’t you talk?" Victoria felt upset, wanting to cry.

She had really had enough of this kind of neglect.

When he was good to her, it was as hot as a blazing fire, almost melting her.

When he was cold, he threw her into an ice cave, letting her freeze to death.

Eugene casually uttered, "I don’t know what to say anymore."

He got up and walked towards the room.

Victoria stood up and followed him, grabbing Eugene’s hand, "You..."

At a mere touch, he recoiled sensitively and disdainfully, "Don’t touch me."

The words pierced Victoria’s heart like a knife.

She froze, her heart cold, tears welled in her eyes.

She couldn’t understand why he had become like this.

He wouldn’t look at her directly and even showed disdain.

Unpredictable, erratic.

Wasn’t this the Eugene from before?

Victoria’s voice was slightly choked, "Fine, I won’t touch you, but can you give me a reason when you hand down the death sentence?"

Eugene turned his back to Victoria, his lonely figure was particularly cold and heavy. He looked towards the room, but his gaze was unfocused, his eyes were red.

After a moment, he spoke softly and coldly, "It’s not your fault."

"If it’s not my fault, then it’s your problem." Victoria couldn’t endure his neglect, her heart pierced painfully by an ice awl, cold and aching, her voice carried a sobbing tone, "Is there anything that can’t be said openly? Do you have to treat me like this?"

"I’m sorry." He coldly left these three words, stepped into the room, and quickly closed the door.

Victoria felt as if her heart was dead, tears welled up in her eyes, slipping down her cheeks, yet she couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh, finding it both sad and absurd.

What kind of nonsensical "sorry" is this?

Two years and she really doesn’t understand Eugene at all.

This marriage really feels like a grave, burying her directly.

No love, no intimacy, wanting to end it but unable to do so, wanting to escape but can’t, she’s always wasting away, always being neglected, always being rejected.

Victoria lightly wiped the tears on her cheeks, took a deep breath, turned around, and took a tissue from the coffee table, carefully wiping away all the tears from her cheeks and eyelids.

She firmly crumpled the tissue and tossed it into the trash bin.

Never in her life has she felt so inclined to swear.

At this moment, she really wants to curse.

To hell with love.

Whoever wants such a marriage, they can have it, Victoria Sinclair doesn’t care.

If the monkeys from her pharmaceutical research project can’t be found, humanity will face another disaster.

Finding the monkeys, pursuing her doctorate, researching new drugs to benefit humanity, managing her own biotech company for health, earning money to support her parents, leading her best friend and employees to prosperity, aren’t these things more important than that stupid love?

Victoria composed herself and went back to her room to sleep.

——

Dim lights, a hazy room.

On the bed, spring scenes rolled with heat waves, and the heavy breathing of the man and woman gradually subsided after reaching the peak.

Vivian Miller, sweaty and covered with a blanket, got up, took a bottle of medicine from the nightstand, poured out two pills, put them into her mouth, and swallowed with water.

"I’ve been sterilized, you don’t need to take contraceptive pills."

"You prescribed them, remember?"

Nathan Austin got up and hugged her, "I thought my return would completely cure your depression, so you wouldn’t need to take medicine anymore."

Vivian closed her eyes and leaned against his chest, "You can’t cure me."

"I did it two years ago, I can do it again now."

"Do you know how my depression came about?"

"Tell me."

"From kindergarten, I liked him, followed him like a shadow, playing what he played, liking what he liked. Later, I watched him fall in love at first sight, watched him secretly have a crush, watched him change little by little, improve bit by bit, fight desperately to chase other women."

"Did you just obsessively overthink and make yourself depressed?"

"Yes, started showing symptoms in high school, thankfully with you, I came out two years ago."

Nathan sneered, "Now Eugene is the one nearing depression."

Vivian was nervous, turning to look at him, "What did you do to Eugene again?"

"Don’t worry, you’ll soon get your wish to marry Eugene."

Vivian was a bit flustered, "Nathan, what happened two years ago almost took half his life, you can’t mess with him again."

"Don’t you want them to divorce?"

"I do, I dream about it."

"Rest assured, I study psychology, I’m good at grasping people’s hearts."

"If Victoria Sinclair knows the truth, will she divorce him?" Vivian worriedly asked.

Nathan stroked her hair, quite confident, "Victoria Sinclair will never know the truth, and Eugene won’t dare to speak."

"Why?"

"Once some things are exposed, they become a thorn between the couple, a thorn that can never be removed. Trying to get close only hurts the other. The more Eugene loves her, the less he dares to tell, he’s afraid that speaking out will end their marriage. He just swallows this thorn, pretending he doesn’t know, hasn’t seen anything, deceiving himself, silently enduring."

Vivian was dissatisfied, "Can you stop tormenting Eugene, you’re so good at understanding people’s hearts, go torment Victoria Sinclair!"

"Victoria Sinclair is too rational, unless it’s someone she loves, no one can hurt her."

"Nathan, how much longer do I have to wait?"

Nathan’s hand slowly reached under the blanket, "Once more, and I’ll tell you."

"I’m really tired."

"Just lie down and don’t move."

"Alright."

"Keep your eyes open and look at me, don’t imagine I’m Eugene, I’ll get jealous."

Vivian, entranced by emotional desire, murmured softly, "You really understand people’s hearts!"